


The Resort

by SereneFreakGeek



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alcohol, Auror Harry Potter, Bruises, Community: hd_erised, Drinking, Drinking Games, Family Dinners, H/D Erised 2018, Harry Potter Epilogue Compliant, Head Auror Ron Weasley, Librarian Pansy Parkinson, M/M, Minor Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Minor Pansy Parkinson/Ginny Weasley, POV Alternating, POV Third Person, Past Astoria Greengrass/Draco Malfoy, Past Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Permanent Injury, Post-Hogwarts, Post-Second War with Voldemort, Professor Draco Malfoy, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-08-25 18:32:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16666033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SereneFreakGeek/pseuds/SereneFreakGeek
Summary: Draco always tried to be the best father he could be to Scorpius- even when he had become best friends with a Potter. He always knew sooner or later that he would have to face Harry Potter once again, on friendlier terms, however, he never expected to have to spend an entire week with him.Harry had been blindsided by Albus' request to go to a resort they've been to before during winter break-withhis best friend Scorpius and his father, Draco Malfoy. He had been putting off asking Draco until the last moment. He knew he had to do it- he would do anything to make his kids happy- but he couldn't even guess what the outcome of this adventure might be.Agreeing to the vacation, the two men make a resolution to be as friendly as possible, to keep their kids happy. Balancing memories of their past, and struggling with their seemingly unrequited crushes, will they figure out that they aren't as different as they once thought?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [persephoneapple](https://archiveofourown.org/users/persephoneapple/gifts).



> I would like to express that the resort mentioned in this fic is completely fictitious! A lot of hard work and dedication went into making this story as best as it could be! And I would also like to sincerely thank P for being the best beta I could have ever asked for and reading through this so many times to make sure everything was as perfect as possible, and M for helping with a last minute beta check! I would also like to thank the mods for being so helpful and courteous, and for arranging this huge fest. Without them, this wouldn't have happened. Enjoy!

Draco slammed his hand down onto his large desk, spilling two ink bottles- one red and one black- and scattering some papers across his desk. He took a deep breath, two, three, before finally opening his eyes to the sight he wished had gone away and yet still remained- _and fidgeted in his spot like the nuisance he was._

"You know Potter, not many parents are as involved in their child's life at Hogwarts as you are." His statement was said bluntly, eyes drilling daggers into Potter's- well, Harry Potter's- chest. He supposed he should say _Harry_ now, instead of just his last name, considering he taught two of his children who happen to have the same last name. _Harry_ shrugged sheepishly, raising a hand to rub the back of his neck (in a decidedly not adorable manner). Draco angrily waved a hand over his desk to vanish his ink mess before standing and walking toward him. "Tell me, please, what exactly made you come here _again_?"

"I- Well, you see- I mean, I know you know- Uh well-" Pott- _Harry's_ stumbling made Draco take yet another deep breath before raising his hands, deciding to play negotiator.

"Is this about James or Albus?" Perhaps simpler questions would get through to him, and Draco could get on grading the mountain of work sitting on his desk. Draco didn't exactly hate paperwork, which was surprising, however, he might have gotten a bit behind the last few days after the first years had attempted brewing a potion. His room still slightly smelled of toenails and lavender. 

"Albus." Harry nodded, almost a proud look on his face that Draco interpreted as him finally able to answer a question since entering his office.

"Progress, finally," Draco mumbled, rolling his eyes before approaching a set of chairs with his tumbler set and whiskey still sitting next to it from the previous night. "Would you like a drink?" he asked amiably, gesturing to it and glancing back toward Harry.

"No, thank you. I have to Apparate to a few more places after this." Harry waved a hand as he spoke, but smiled softly toward Draco in thanks of the suggestion. Draco took a discreet deep breath, knowing it was only polite that he shouldn't pour himself anything if Harry wasn't going to drink.

"Alright. Now, is this about Albus' potion grade?" That was always the problem if the parent requested a meeting with Draco. Although, Harry didn't request one, did he? He just stormed in.

"No- uh- actually." Harry rubbed the back of his neck again and Draco just barely kept his temper reined in.

"If you start stuttering again, so help me Salazar-" Draco cut himself off, taking another deep breath. Ok, so he kept _most_ of his temper reined in. "What on this flat earth could this be about, if not for Albus' grade?"

"It's about- wait, did you just say flat earth?" Harry asked, tilting his head slightly with an extremely confused expression on his face.

"Get back on track, Potter." Draco snapped his fingers at him, glaring toward him before making his way back to his desk. "I have papers to grade so unless you want to help me with them I'd suggest ending this discussion soon and leaving me in peace."

Harry's mouth opened and closed like a gasping fish before he finally shook his head and took a step toward Draco, looking determined. "It's about winter break. Albus wants Scorpius to attend with him."

Draco blinked a few times at the mention of his son, his brain trying to process this sudden turn of events. "Winter break," Draco repeated uselessly, laying a hand on his desk and staring down at the papers spread across the surface. His mind ran through multiple scenarios. Astoria wanted him for one week in the break; for Draco's time he wanted to spend it with Scorpius. It had happened every winter break- every time he wasn't in school if he was honest with himself, but he couldn't control his son's life anymore. Scorpius was his own person. He should discuss this with his son beforehand, Draco concluded. He closed his eyes and rubbed them harshly with one hand before sighing.

"I need some time to think this over and discuss this with my son privately. I will owl you the response. Thank you for coming all the way out here to ask me about this," Draco replied, only slightly snarky in the way he said it. He opened his eyes, moving around his desk to sit down before noticing that Harry was still fidgeting in place. "If that is all, I really do need to grade these papers," Draco added, staring at him and trailing off his sentence. Harry finally glanced up, biting his lip before he took another step in Draco's direction, finally speaking up.

"Actually, I didn't explain fully. We're going on vacation to a winter resort in Northern Ireland. And I wasn't _just_ inviting Scorpius. I was inviting him as well as you," Harry finished, looking a bit nervous. Draco let his surprise show on his face for longer then he was comfortable with, but quickly got ahold of himself and cleared his throat, glancing down at his desk and rearranging the papers into some semblance of order that was all for show. Silence enveloped the room around them for what felt like a century before Draco glanced up, forcing a smile and nodding.

"Thank you for the invitation, Harry. I will discuss this with my son and owl you the response," he replied, sitting down slowly in his chair, smoothing out his robes as he sat. Harry finally released a blinding smile and nodded, saying a quick goodbye before practically dashing out of the room.

Draco finally let himself slump slightly, immediately heading for the alcohol he had forced himself not to down while Harry was around. Pouring himself a glass, he raised the liquid to his mouth and drank, closing his eyes to centre himself for a moment. Winter break in a resort in Ireland? Stuck in the snow with _Harry Potter_? How odd could his life really turn?

\---

Walking into the Hogwarts library was always just a bit too surreal for Draco, being a professor now. He still came here to work most days, though to grade papers instead of writing them. Sometimes he'd make the trip when he needed a book to study a recent interest he'd developed or to help a new class he was going to teach. Other days, like today, it was to take the new librarian and his best friend, Pansy Parkinson, into aisle 13B, 'Famous Muggle Literature,' and complain about his life as if he lived in a soap opera. In his defence, Hogwarts was a very lively place, full of offending pranks and drama.

"Draco, darling, I don't have time for your petty squabbles right now! I just started relocation of 3A and none of it is alphabetical!" Her voice was high and whiny, but she let herself be pulled along to the back of the library by his hand in hers. The comment did make him roll his eyes, and think back to the first few years of her job here when she had sworn that she hated books and didn't want to touch any of them (she had been extremely grateful for the job offer from the Headmistress though).

"Pansy, this is important." The statement just drew a roll of her eyes toward him, finally taking her hand back once they were standing in the middle of the aisle. He waved his wand absentmindedly, conjuring a couch against one of the bookcases and falling onto it dramatically. Pansy followed after, sitting and crossing her arms.

"The last time you said that a Weasley stink bomb went off in your chambers."

"That _was_ important!" Draco whined loudly, his eyes wide toward her. He only received a raised eyebrow in response before he huffed and crossed his own arms. "It's Potter."

"Which one?" she asked, rolling her head around as if she was tired. "You really just need to say their first name, it's getting confusing-"

" _Harry_ Potter," Draco said, glaring once Pansy snapped her head up and grinned like a Cheshire cat.

"Oh?" She drew out the word, leaning forward slightly like she was ready to pounce. "Harry? What happened? Is it a letter? Do you have it on you?" She gasped, just getting more excited as she talked. "Can I see it? Is he proclaiming his undying love for you?"

"Pansy!" He cut her off, feeling heat warm his cheeks as he raised his hands in an attempt to get her to stop talking. "There is no letter! He just came by my office."

Pansy's grin seemed to grow wider as she leaned back, cocking her head. "Oh? Was this scheduled or did he happen to just _drop-in_?"

Draco groaned, closing his eyes and rubbing them with his fingers. "I don't like the way you said that- nothing happened!" Opening his eyes he watched her raise her eyebrows and he sighed, answering the question, "Yes, he showed up at my office unannounced." He heard her squeal and he just rolled his eyes, sinking further into his seat to mope. "If you're going to be like that I won't say anything. I don't know _why_ I let you be my best friend."

"You love me, darling," Pansy replied offhandedly, studying her long pink nails before glancing back at him. "Please tell me this has something to do with the huge crushes you both had for each other in school."

"There was no crush!" Draco whined, widening his eyes. Pansy sighed, shaking her head.

"I swear, you'll give me a concussion with how hard you're forcing me to roll my eyes. And how often!" She slapped his leg lightly, glaring at him. "Drop the act. I was there in school. I know how it went."

Draco studied her for a moment longer before sighing and closing his eyes. "No, we did not talk about any crushes we may or may not have had. He invited Scorpius and me to a resort over winter break with him and Albus." When there was no reply, he opened his eyes cautiously to see her studying her nails intently, her body facing slightly away from him. He narrowed his eyes before gasping loudly, sitting up quickly in his seat. "You knew! You knew and you didn't warn me! You tramp!"

She smacked his leg a bit harder but bit her bright red lip. He crossed his arms, glaring at her before she finally sighed and shrugged. "Okay, yes I knew. Ginny told me about Harry postponing asking you until the last minute, and Albus and Scorpius might have come up to me earlier than that and asked for advice on how to ask you both."

Draco scoffed, shaking his head. "My one and only best friend, used against me and betraying me."

"It's not betraying, Draco!" She huffed, turning her body to face him better, a serious expression in her eyes, "You have been cooped up in Hogwarts for far too long. You need a vacation, and you need one with your son. And he wants one with you and his best friend. And if Harry might _happen_ to be there, and if some talks happen between you two that get you to open up and-"

"Pansy," Draco quickly interrupted, cutting her off with a glare. She huffed again but continued.

"All I'm saying is that this is a good idea. For everyone involved." Draco chewed on that thought, watching Pansy while she kept her poker face on, and sighed quietly.

"I knew it was bad news when you started dating Potter's ex-wife." Pansy just rolled her eyes, reaching forward and taking his hands in hers. 

"You know Scorpius wants this."

"Stop trying to guilt me, woman, I'll do it," Draco rumbled, but tightened his grip on her hands in reassurance.

"You will?" The excited nature of the remark, and the fact that Draco was staring at Pansy and she had most definitely not moved her mouth surprised Draco for a moment. He jumped, then glanced around to spot his son at the entrance to the aisle, looking both excited and embarrassed at being caught. Scorpius pushed through his emotions, walking quickly toward his father and grinning at him. "You'll do it? You'll say yes?"

Draco blinked a few times, trying to process the information of his son standing in front of him, eager and excited, and knew there was no way to even say no now if he had wanted to. He felt Pansy pat his hands twice before standing and walking back toward the front of the library, shooting him a look and glancing at the couch to make sure he got rid of it before leaving the library. He wouldn't make the mistake again of leaving the couch there- not after last time.

"Scorpius, sit, please." Draco waved toward Pansy's vacant spot, and he watched his son sit quickly, but on the edge of his seat as if he was about to jump up and run at any time. Draco took a deep breath, studying his son before reaching out to take his hand. "Is this really what you want? If we go on this vacation, you won't have time to see your mother. Albus won't have time to see _his_ mother." 

Before he had even finished talking Scorpius was nodding quickly, just barely letting Draco finish his thoughts before bursting out, "Yes, I'm sure father! I've owled mother, she said she's okay with it as long as I visit her over spring break and make the deviled eggs that she adores. And as long as you're there with me." Draco blinked a few times, tilting his head before Scorpius continued quickly, "And Albus said that his mother is perfectly fine with it! She'll be spending the break with James and Lily at the Burrow." Draco sighed, but Scorpius, again, cut him off before he could speak. "I promise, father, I'll do all of my work before the break. I have good grades, I'll study as much as I need to! Please?"

Draco shook his head and chuckled, smiling to his son. "Yes, Scorpius. Calm down, take a deep breath." He watched his son smile brightly but follow his instructions, relaxing slightly. "You will most definitely finish all of your work and maintain good grades, I expect that regardless. But yes, we can go with the Potters." Scorpius jumped up quickly, squeezing his father's hands and leaning down to press a kiss onto Draco's head before running down the aisle, yelling his thanks. He heard Pansy reprimand him for yelling and running in her library and he smiled fondly. Taking a deep breath, he let his head fall into his hands and wondered what he just got himself into.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry grumbled under his breath, glaring at the twin towers of files on his desk. Paperwork would be the death of him. Harry began to wonder how many papercuts it would take to kill a man. Perhaps he could file a dangerous work environment form of some kind, he was sure one existed. Reaching over, he took a large gulp of his coffee before almost spitting it out, breathing quickly from how hot it was. Setting the cup down, he shook his head and signed the bottom of the file he just finished before tossing it into the outgoing box. Another two files popped into existence above his towers, adding to the height and he resumed glaring at them. 

Suddenly an envelope flew over to his desk, landing gently in the middle, causing Harry to furrow his brow. He didn't recognise the envelope or the fancy handwriting of his name on the front of it. Opening it, his eyebrows raised when he noticed the name, and read through the letter quickly. It was formally written, of course, it would be considering it was from Draco. It simply stated that they would be glad to attend winter break with Albus and Harry. Draco requested details of where to meet up and the time frame, as well as everything he should be expected to pack for the trip. Harry narrowed his eyes at the letter, studying the words as if they were trying to say something else entirely. Realising he was being foolish, he took a deep breath and tossed it to the side, eyeing the elegant handwriting before pulling out his own pen and paper, trying to think of everything they may need for the trip. Then he began to wonder what exactly Draco would want to do at the resort since there are plenty of different things to do. Perhaps he should just send him the resort brochure. 

There were way too many different things to do, that perhaps Harry might not even ever see Draco during the vacation. Would that be a good or bad thing? Did Harry actually _want_ to talk to Draco? He knew the man was better now- was a good person now- and was intelligent to boot. Perhaps he should plan some time to spare so he could take Draco aside and have a discussion. Maybe they could be friends? He pictured Draco in his mind's eye, biting his lip and eyeing the handwriting again. He'd heard a lot about the man from his kids. He seemed almost like a different person now. How different was he really, though? Harry shook his head, the thoughts swarming his mind, before reaching for his coffee absentmindedly. 

"Harry!" The yell from his friend- and boss- caused him to jump, and coffee to slosh around his cup and out onto his front. He jumped up quickly, causing more coffee to spill out onto himself. He set the cup down and pulled the soaked fabric away from his body, hissing at the heat burning his chest.

"Bloody hell, Ron," Harry cursed loudly, glancing up to glare at him. The Head Auror just shrugged, grinning and leaning against the door jamb. Harry patted around his desk to find his wand buried amongst tons of papers before waving it to evaporate the coffee that had gotten onto his desk. He quickly checked the letter Draco had sent and let out a sigh of relief that coffee hadn't spilt on it.

This, though, hadn't gone unnoticed by his friend, who launched himself to his desk to snatch the paper. Ron raised it above his head, reading it as Harry attempted to snatch it back. "What is this?" Ron asked, a grin in his voice as he danced around the office, reading it. "Such swirly handwriting for such a poncy git. I'm not really surprised." He grinned when Harry finally managed to snatch the letter from him, and tucked his hands into his pockets. "Why is the ferret sending you a letter? Are you two finally dating?" 

Harry's cheeks burned as he blushed, and shook his head, huffing as he tossed the letter onto his desk. "No, we're not dating. I just asked him if he and his son want to come with Albus and me to that resort in Northern Ireland. That's all." Harry went back to his shirt, holding it away from his chest and scrunched his nose at the horrible feeling of wearing wet clothes.

"Oh? You finally got your shit together and asked him?" Ron inquired, looking for all the world surprised by this revelation. Harry glanced at him, offended, and shook his head.

"I don't know what you're talking about! I've just been busy!" Harry motioned toward his desk, the files standing tall- though one seemed to be slightly leaning now. That didn't look very good, Harry decided.

"Mate, I'm your boss. This pile has been sitting here for a month. I should be on your arse about it, by the way." Ron clapped a hand against Harry's back, smirking, "But I also know you've just been sitting on your arse. You haven't been busy. Not like you can be with that knee of yours."

"Whatever, " Harry mumbled, knowing his face was red, but still managing to shoot a glare toward his _supposed_ best friend. "And don't mention that. You know I hate it being brought up. Someone could overhear." He glanced out the door to his office, not spying anyone walking by.

"No one is going to hear about it. No one would really care, if I'm being honest, mate." Ron insisted, shrugging his shoulders, though his eyes still showed a hint of pity. Harry hated that, shaking his head and taking a deep breath.

"Just don't bring it up," Harry insisted, pulling his shirt away from his skin and holding it there, huffing in distaste.

"Can I bring up your crush on a certain blond git, then?" Ron asked, grinning toward Harry before wiggling his eyebrows. "And the week-long trip you're going to be stuck with him on?"

"I need to take care of this," Harry replied quickly, ducking under Ron before running out the door of his office, leaving behind Ron's laughter, and took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

 _'There's no reason for this,'_ Harry told himself, shaking his head, _'it's just Draco. It's just winter break. It's just a week of those two combined. Nothing scary.'_ He knew as he said these words to himself that he was lying.

\---

Coughing, Harry stumbled through the Floo Network, bumping his knee into the coffee table set up in front of the fireplace. He cursed to himself, knowing he'll never really get the hang of stepping out of a swirling fireplace, reaching down to rub his knee and glared at the offending piece of furniture.

"That happens almost every day. It did while we were still together, it's happened for so long. Why not just move the bloody table? No one even uses it." Harry jumped a mile in the air when he heard the unexpected voice, and placed a calming hand on his chest, breathing deeply to settle his heart.

"Ginny, I swear, you need to announce yourself before you give me a heart attack one of these days," he said seriously, as he glanced over to see her leaning casually against the wall between the sitting room and kitchen, a glass of white wine in hand.

"But it's fun," she said with a shrug and a smirk before taking a drink of her wine. Harry shook his head in response, shrugging out of his Auror robes and hanging them on a hook near the fireplace.

"I knew I would regret you and Pansy getting together. She's making you a sadist." He turned and walked past her, placing a kiss on her temple before walking to his fridge to grab a Muggle beer. He knew most didn't prefer them, considering the bitter taste, but he enjoyed it nonetheless. At least he knew that they would always be waiting for him after work, considering no one else that visited drank them.

"How do you know I wasn't a sadist before? Maybe we split up because you weren't masochistic enough for me." She moved to sit at the table, raising her eyebrows and grinning. "How do you know it's not the other way around and I'm actually the masochist?"

Harry shook his head, groaning as he sank into a chair opposite of her. "Please stop talking about your kinky lesbian sex in my house. This is a kinky-lesbian-sex free zone. I'd like to keep it that way."

"How do you know-"

"No!" Harry interrupted quickly, his eyes widening before Ginny began to cackle loudly. Harry groaned, laying his head on his kitchen table. "This day has been difficult enough without you bullying me in my own home."

"Oh!" Ginny said excitedly, placing her glass down and pushing against his mop of hair. "What happened! Is it embarrassing? Tell me everything."

"I hate you."

"Doubtful."

Harry groaned as he sat up, taking a long drink from his bottle while staring at an excited Ginny. He narrowed his eyes slightly before shaking his head as he placed the bottle back onto the table. "It's nothing."

"Rude," Ginny mumbled under her breath, rolling her eyes and spinning her wine glass by its stem as it rested on the table. "Well, no matter _why_ you didn't want to tell me, I know that you asked Draco, finally." Harry rolled his head back, groaning, though Ginny kept on. "Pansy fire-called me and told me all about how you marched into Draco's office without warning and asked him on a date."

"It's not a date!" Harry cried, his voice high pitched as he sat up. His eyes were wide and his face heated with a blush. Ginny cackled again and shook her head.

"Well, Draco didn't say it like that, don't worry. Though, you have to admit. Spending winter break with one of your longest lasting crushes might be a little taxing." She winked before sipping her wine. "Are you sure you can handle it?"

"He's not a crush," Harry mumbled into his beer, sneering when Ginny laughed as if he told the funniest joke. "He's not!"

"Harry, honey, sweetie," she began, reaching over and patting his hand, "I watched you through Hogwarts and after. Even when we were married you had a crush on the man."

"I- I did not," he mumbled weakly, watching her raise her eyebrows. "I was very loyal," he said, drinking deeply as Ginny's smile turned soft.

"You were very," she agreed, patting his hand again. "But now you're single and don't have to be loyal to anyone. And that means jumping on this opportunity." She squeezed his hand, giving him a meaningful look. Harry took a deep breath, glancing down at their hands and chewed on his lip.

"Well, I still have to be loyal to Albus. How do you think he'd feel if I started dating his best friend's dad?" Glancing up, he noticed Ginny's eyes were wide and he suddenly realised what he said.

"You did it! You admitted you like him! That you want to date him!" Harry rolled his head back, staring at the ceiling and wishing he didn't exist. "No! Don't do that, this is a good thing, Harry. You're finally admitting your feelings."

"It was a what if expression, Ginny. I wasn't admitting anything," Harry cried out, with wide eyes and shaking his head.

"Just admit it!"

"Ginny!"

"Fine!" She huffed, glaring toward Harry as if he'd done something wrong, and they both sat there for a moment- Ginny sipping her wine and Harry gulping down his beer until the bottle was empty. After a long silence, Ginny sighed and studied him. "I'll miss you both for the break." Harry watched her with a frown, but Ginny shook her head, some of her red hair coming loose from a bun at the back of her head. "I'm glad you're going on this trip. I really am. I'll just miss you both." Harry smiled and reached forward, placing a hand on hers. 

"I'd say I'll miss you too, but it's only for a week and you've been tormenting me endlessly recently." Ginny scoffed and smacked his hand lightly, while Harry just grinned and pulled his hand back.

"Hey, I gotta make up for the time I'll lose while you're gone." She winked at him, then stood, setting her empty glass next to the sink. "Anyway, I have to head out. Pansy finally has some spare time for me now, since she finished remodelling the entire library." She rolled her eyes, but they're soft and fond as she thought of her girlfriend. "It's hard dating someone who works at Hogwarts." She glanced toward Harry, smirking before walking away and calling back, "Though, I guess you'll understand soon enough!" Harry shook his head, sighing as he heard his Floo flare up signalling her departure.

"Why are all the Weasleys trying to kill me?" he mumbled to himself, taking a deep breath before standing to look for the brochure he stuffed somewhere in the kitchen after Albus had given it to him. He still needed to send it over to Draco.


	3. Chapter 3

Studying the instructions he received, Draco realised all too late that he must be staying at a Muggle resort. Having to Floo to one place, then get in a _car_ and drive to a completely different place and get out? He shook his head, imagining the metal contraptions- death traps, more like it- that drive down the road in Muggle London. He took a deep breath, hoping that Harry had planned for a driver since he didn't know how to operate a vehicle, and turned as he heard his door open and then slam closed.

"Mind the door, Scorp," Draco called out, as he watched his son lug a huge suitcase across the floor before wondering if he had ever looked like that. He watched him struggle for a few more seconds, then sighed, waving his wand and levitating the offensive rectangle over to where he stood. Scorpius laughed as he watched, then walked over and shook his head. "Scorpius, did you know that this was a Muggle resort?"

He watched his son's eyes flash with some unknown emotion before he glanced to the floor, not meeting Draco's eyes. "I did, actually. Did I forget to mention that?"

"Yes, son, you did," Draco said, verging on his 'whiny voice' territory that he only used with Pansy. "Now I'm going to have to ride in one of those death traps that Muggles call 'cars!' And then I bet you that Potter will be there right when we get out and he'll see just how nervous I was-"

"Father?" Draco was taken out of the rant he had been about to start as he glanced down toward his son. Scorpius seemed confused, but also amused, and Draco hesitated a moment before gesturing him to continue. "Are you only worried about the car? You don't have any other problems?"

Draco was taken aback, staring down at his son before gulping nervously and glancing away. "Yes, the car is the only thing I am nervous about. Did you assume differently? Or were you _told_ differently?" He glanced back to Scorpius in time to catch guilt cross his son's face.

"I-" he only managed the word before looking down, almost ashamed of himself. Draco glanced at the clock hanging above the fireplace in his chambers, noticing they could get there just on time if they left now. Then he shook his head, laying his papers down on his suitcase nearby. He walked over, took Scorpius' hand and led him to a nearby loveseat, sitting them both down.

Draco took a deep breath as he looked into his son's eyes, "Scorpius, I know that I was a part of something- something just truly _evil_ , in my past. And I was raised to think a certain way that has been disproven to me and everyone else. But listen, son, when I say that every prejudice I had with the Muggles is gone. And if not completely, I am actively working toward rewiring my brain and telling myself that Muggles are no different from us." He tightened his grip on his son's hands, as he took another deep breath, "And I am so sorry that my past has caught up to us- to _you_. If I had known back then that anything I did would affect you in this way, I would have changed my mind in an instant."

"No." Draco was taken aback by this, blinking a few times, as he watched his son's determined face. "You couldn't have. You had no choice in the war. You were protecting your mother and father, and if you didn't they and you would have all died. And if you died, I wouldn't have been born." Scorpius threw him a cocky grin and Draco just sighed in return, before it was Scorpius' chance to squeeze their hands. "I understand the war, dad. I studied it, but I also learned from the people _in_ it. You, Aunt Pans, Albus' parents. They all said you had no choice in what you did."

Draco blinked a few times before cocking his head, "They all did?"

"Yes! Well, Mrs Pott- uh, Ginny," he said the name uncertainly, as if not exactly sure what to call her, "said that she didn't know much about your side of the war, and she doesn't like to talk about it. But she holds no ill will toward you. Mr Potter said that he believes you are good, even testified for you during the trials." Draco nodded before he glanced away and bit his lip, thinking this information over.

"Well, no matter that." Draco let go of his son's hands, stood and faced the Floo. "We need to embark on the most dangerous journey now-"

"Dad-"

"Full of unparalleled danger-"

"Dad-"

"It's probably worse than both of the Wizarding wars-"

"Merlin, father, we aren't going to die! Let's go!" Scorpius, seemed both aggravated yet amused, as he shook his head and walked over to his suitcase, grabbed ahold and patted himself down to make sure he had everything. Draco softly smirked, as he walked over to grab the papers he put down and his own suitcase before stepping through the Floo.

\---

Stepping out of the motor vehicle, Draco took a deep breath and glanced around at the large resort building and surrounding land. The resort took up a lot of space, with mountains behind the large building and a forest in front. From the brochure he had read, Draco knew there were cabins and other buildings located behind the main one that he stood in front of. Snow covered almost every inch of what he saw, though the pathways were cleared and there were strings of lights hanging along the outside of the resort on the walls, and wrapped around some trees and hedges. As Draco glanced over, he saw Scorpius paying the cab fare and apologising, again, for his father's 'motion sickness and anxiety' before stepping around to the boot of the car to save their luggage from the vehicle trying to devour it. Still, though, there were no signs of the Potters and Draco released a breath, as he went over to take his suitcase from his son.

Once everything was in hand, the two walked up the sidewalk toward the door, Draco telling Scorpius to be careful walking as there may be ice, and Scorpius replying in typical teenage fashion with an eye roll and complete confidence in himself. Entering the building brought a wave of heat that swarmed them, making Draco slightly uncomfortable in his thick overcoat. Draco would have believed that to be a heating charm if he hadn't known any better, and he glanced around the large room they walked into wondering exactly how the Muggles created so much heat to fill this entire room without using any magic. It seemed that every time Draco visited the Muggle world, they surprised him more and more.

"Scorpius!" Draco turned to the sound of the voice and spied Albus and Scorpius running to each other and giving a big hug, Harry walking a bit behind Albus and smirking at the two of them. Draco readjusted his hold on his suitcase, grabbed the handle for Scorpius' and walked over toward the boys to meet in the middle. 

"Glad to see you made it here alive," Harry said, smiling humorously toward Draco, and Draco narrowed his eyes toward the man in response, wondering if he knew that Draco would've been terrified of cars.

"Barely," Scorpius began, separating from Albus and grinning toward his friend. "Father kept screaming about how he was going to die, which caused the driver to get scared and _swerve_ , which then, in turn, caused more yelling from father about how the driver was trying to kill us. It was all a mess." The three of them laughed together, as Draco huffed and crossed his arms.

"He _was_ trying to kill us! Those stupid death traps," Draco started to defend himself, but just mumbled to an end when he noticed the others just laughed harder. The laughter eventually died down, but Draco kept his eyes roaming the building, taking in the decorations before his eyes returned to the mostly quiet group. The two boys were whispering amongst themselves, and Harry seemed to have been staring at Draco, though he didn't know for how long.

"Well, welcome to Snowmass Village, everyone!" Harry finally said, grinning and widening his arms as if to show off everything around him. "The multi-activity family resort that specialises in the winter season!" Draco shook his head at the clear quote from the brochure but watched as Harry bowed dramatically. "I have our cabin keys in hand if you all will please follow me?" He walked to the other side of the building, exiting out one of the back doors. Draco brought up the rear, watching Scorpius and Albus to make sure they didn't run off before they had a chance to go over rules. 

They walked across the pavement most of the way, the only place that had been cleared of snow. Draco glanced around and saw that it snowed very often here, the snow just to the side of the walkway coming up at least five inches. As he looked at the trees surrounding them, he immediately knew they were evergreen, their green needles poked through the snow laying on their branches. Every once in a while there would be one tree that was lit up with more strings of white lights, and Draco smiled at this, finding it pleasing to look at and yet not overly done. Draco huffed, hoisting his bag up behind him, wondering why it was taking so long to get to their cabin as they passed more than just a few on the way.

"Sorry it's so far back here," Harry called from the front, as he turned and smiled toward his group before he readjusted his own hold on his suitcase and continued on. "Our cabin is in the very back, right against the edge of the woods and this first mountain here. It's a good view, and away from all the other cabins, but it's a bit of a walk." Draco huffed again, glancing around toward the mountains. He spotted the snowboarding and skiing slopes being used by what looked like ants from this distance and knew that while he wouldn't be doing that, it was probably a first stop for the younger boys.

Just as their cabin came into view, the last one on this trek and far behind all the others as promised, little snowflakes began to fall; Draco glanced up to the grey sky and saw no breaks in the clouds overhead. As he walked up and stood just outside the cabin, he glanced around and wished for a porch and canopy to shield them from the small flakes as Harry fit the key into the doorknob, turned and let them in. Harry was practically pushed into the door by the boys who hurried inside, glancing around for the rooms. Draco lugged his suitcase inside and left it in what looked like the sitting room, as he walked down the hall he spotted rooms on the left and right across from each other, with a bathroom in the middle. When he looked into the room on the right he saw the boys and sighed, glancing into the room on the left. 

"Well, it seems there are two rooms with two beds each. Malfoys can take this room here on the left, while the Potters-"

"Actually-" Scorpius interrupted, walking slowly toward his father as if he didn't want to spook a wild animal. "Albus and I were hoping that we could share a room?" Draco sucked in a deep breath, turned around toward the sitting room and spotted Harry at the entrance to the hallway. The man just shrugged, almost as if saying 'what can you do?' and Draco sighed, looking back toward his son.

"Alright, fine," Draco relented, causing the boys to cheer before he raised his hands, "However, the four of us must have dinner together every night! You both will be running off doing Merlin knows what during the day, we need to spend at least _some_ time together, as a fam- as a group." The boys nodded in unison, agreeing quickly, and Draco glanced behind him toward Harry, who also nodded and smiled as if this was a brilliant idea. The door to the room the boys were in slammed shut and Draco huffed, calling out, "Meet us in the dining hall in the main building at six pm, don't be late!" He stared at the door for a moment longer, hearing muffled affirmations, before moving to grab his suitcase, dragging it into the room that he and Harry would be sharing.

"I'll take the bed closest to the window, Potter." Draco hefted his suitcase over to sit in front of the bed he chose, hearing Harry follow in behind him.

"Sure. I don't mind either way." Draco rolled his eyes at this, kneeling down to unzip the top of his suitcase, taking things out to place in certain spots on his side of the room.

"Obviously." The comment was mumbled under his breath, but at the sudden stillness on the other side of the room, he figured that Harry had heard it.

"What does that mean?" Harry asked, a bit accusatory, and Draco turned to see a familiar glare set upon him.

"What do you think it means? You're obviously not intelligent enough to realise that being on this side of the cabin means the sun will rise directly in front of our window, and that the sunlight will shine directly on the bed closest to the window, waking the person sleeping there up right at dawn, giving them plenty of time to awaken and have a full day at this resort." Draco ranted, as he waved his arm around and gestured toward the window. Harry just scoffed, shaking his head and rolled his eyes.

"It's a vacation, Malfoy, not a damn race. I wouldn't want a light to be shining in my eyes in the morning, either, I prefer to sleep in."

"Of course you would, bloody brute-"

"Draco!" Harry's yell caused Draco to jump, widening his eyes slightly toward the other man. "We have to share a damn room for a week, let's at least try to be civil, instead of reverting to our old ways and picking fights out of thin air." Harry took a deep breath, picked up his suitcase and laid it on his bed. Draco stood in place, stunned while watching as Harry huffed and ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm heading out, see you at dinner."

Draco nodded, though it went unnoticed by the man hurrying out of the room. Slowly, Draco took a deep breath and continued setting up his room how he saw fit. Thinking over the conversation, Draco realised that he perhaps had gone too hard on Harry. He saw the man and was reminded of a different time, a time that they had both moved on from. And yet Draco still acted as he had while a student. He was ashamed. He instigated the whole scene, he threw insults and built walls before they even had a chance to speak. Finally sitting on his bed, Draco put his head into his hands, he felt tremendously guilty. He _had_ to change his attitude, he had to think of Harry in a new light. For his own sake considering Harry was his roommate but also for Scorpius' sake. Harry's son was Scorpius' best friend, there was no way to get around this. 

Taking a deep breath, Draco straightened his back and nodded to himself. He would make it through this week, and perhaps even enjoy the company. With this new goal in mind, he stood and made his way out of the room. Albus and Scorpius were shuffling out of the cabin, decked full of snow gear, and Draco shouted to them to be careful before heading toward the building that housed the rest and relaxation portion of the resort. It began to snow a bit heavier on the walk, but Draco just smiled, watching the flakes fall all around him. As he glanced up and around at the scenery, he found that he didn't regret this trip at all. The scenery was beautiful, and it fit Draco's introspective mood.

As Draco walked inside a sauna he passed earlier, he spotted a familiar figure already sitting, eyes closed, his head thrown back and a towel wrapped around his waist, enjoying the heat. Harry had apparently had the same idea, to let off some steam after their argument. Draco wouldn't interrupt, so he slowly backed out, walked to the building next door to instead get a massage. He would have to remember to apologise to the man for how he acted.

\---

Walking into the resort's main building, he followed the signs that led him to a dining room. It was large, almost as big as the Great Hall at Hogwarts, though with small tables and booths scattered throughout the room instead of long tables. He scanned the room, wondering if he was the first to arrive before noticing the boys and Harry all sitting at a table toward the back, Albus talking animatedly with his father. Draco approached, sliding into the last seat and smiling toward his son, then Albus, and finally Harry. Draco was sure he looked a bit sheepish and nodded toward Harry. Tension seemed to flow out of Harry's shoulders at this, and Harry watched Draco with a critical eye before smiling softly and nodding back. 

Placing their order with a waitress that came by, the boys began to excitedly tell Draco and Harry different points about their adventures in snowboarding, including a time when Scorpius had apparently turned his foot wrong and fell, rolling down the hill for a while before coming to a stop against a rock.

"It was _so_ fun, dad!" Scorpius exclaimed, his eyes lighting up. "Though I'll probably have a wicked bruise on my ribs tomorrow." He began reaching down, pulling up his shirt to reveal the right side of his chest, a small splattering of purple already appearing on his skin.

"Scorpius! Lower your shirt, we are in public!" Draco said, reaching over to bat at his son's hand. "You got checked over by the nurses nearby? You didn't break any bones?" His worry was evident in his tone, but Scorpius just rolled his eyes, smiling toward his father.

"Of course I got checked out. I'm pretty sure that nurse was about to strap me down to a gurney if I insisted I was fine one more time." Albus laughed loudly, throwing his head back at the memory, and Draco was struck suddenly by how much it reminded him of Harry at that age. Draco took a deep breath, shaking his head and lowering his voice.

"No matter, we can heal that right up once we get back to the cabin-"

"No!" Harry said quickly, his eyes widening, his hand stretched toward Draco as if he was going to stop him from doing it right then and there, though Draco only wielded a fork with a piece of steak on it. Draco raised an eyebrow, watching the man. Harry lowered his hand, clearing his throat before placing his arm on the back of Draco's chair, leaning in closely to whisper into his ear. "There are natural ley lines that surround the area, full to bursting of magic. The mountains have a large reserve, and there are many lines that flow through the forest just next to us. They collide against each other here, which is why this place feels so magical to the Muggles, it's why they're drawn here. However, if we attempt to cast any magic, it could go horribly wrong. It could come out too powerful, or a different spell might happen altogether. There are a few places like this, but this is a lesser known one." 

Harry backed up slowly, and Draco shook his head to clear the fog in his brain. Harry had been so close and had smelled amazing, distracting him. The words he had spoken and his proximity were the only things Draco had been able to focus on, though now he felt heat spread through his cheeks and toward his chest, with a tingly feeling fluttering in his stomach, making him not hungry anymore. "No magic, then," Draco whispered and glanced up to meet shockingly green eyes staring into him.

"No magic," Harry agreed with a soft smile before backing up and resuming his dinner. Raising his hand, Draco ate the piece of steak from his fork, chewing slowly and smiling toward his son as they continued on with the story of their day. 

"What about you, dad? What did you do today?" Scorpius finally asked, shocking Draco slightly, and he blinked, swallowing the bite he had and wiping his mouth with a napkin before smiling toward his son.

"I didn't do much. I had a massage, relaxed in the hot springs. Eventually, I just sat in a heated sitting room and read one of my books." Draco shrugged, though smirked when his son groaned loudly.

"No! You're doing it wrong!" Albus nodded sagely as if he made complete sense.

"Wrong?" Harry piped up, a twin smirk on his face to the one that Draco wore himself. "Is there a wrong way to have a vacation?"

"Yes!" Scorpius insisted, nodding quickly. "That!" He pointed at Draco and this time Draco couldn't keep in a chuckle, his son shooting him a glare. "He's reading! He's doing, like- school work or something! But during school break? That's not how this works."

"Scorp, I'm not berating you on receiving a giant bruise on your ribs, that you will regret might I add. All people are different and enjoy different things. If I prefer to sit in a heated room, looking out large windows at a peaceful scenery while reading a nice book- which is not schoolwork, might I add, it's completely fictional- then that's what I'll do during my break. I'm sorry that I'm not as active as you prefer to be." Draco leaned down slightly, taking another bite from his steak to signal that he was done discussing this, and had to keep from smiling at Scorpius' groan. Albus just rolled his eyes, shaking his head and elbowing his friend.

"He's just trying to rile you up, it's okay." He heard whispered to his son, though he kept his eyes averted, not wanting to intrude.

"No, that's just how he is, Al. It's weird."

"You're weird," Albus mumbled back, and they both laughed as if this was some kind of inside joke. Draco glanced over to Harry, and they shared the same smile, one that showed adoration and love for their sons, before resuming their meal. Dinner passed peacefully with the boys excusing themselves after dessert. Draco took Scorpius' hand to bring the boy down so he could kiss his head before they both ran off again; Draco shook his head at their antics.

"Draco?" It was said quietly, the room had mostly emptied during their dinner so there were less murmuring voices as background noises, and Draco glanced up to meet Harry's eyes. "Would you care to join me for a drink? There's a sitting room upstairs that looks out over the mountains and forest. It's a nice view." Draco chewed his lip, staring at him, considering this. It would give him an opportunity to apologise, though he figured he already had with the nod they shared at the beginning of dinner. Would Draco be able to converse civilly enough? He didn't want to push his own limits, not knowing where they lay, but he found himself nodding to Harry, agreeing to join him.

They both stood, leaving a tip for the waitress- not having to pay for the food since it came with the package that Harry had purchased- and wandered toward the exit. Harry asked him to wait for a moment as he walked to the bar near the doors, ordering and paying for a bottle of whiskey and grabbing two glasses before walking back to the door, juggling all the glass he was carrying. Draco hurriedly reached out, taking the two empty glasses and shaking his head fondly at the man in front of him. Harry gave him an unreadable look and a soft smile before they left the dining hall, finding the nearest stairs and climbing them. 

Following Harry led to a small nook of a room, with strings of lights hanging at the tops of the walls, comfortable chairs angled toward two walls full of floor-to-ceiling windows, and a view of the mountains and forest with no people walking around to disturb the snow. It looked like a little slice of the resort that remained uninhabited for some reason, and gently floating snow completed the whole look of it. Walking up to the window, Draco leaned close to it, glancing around and studying the scenery, smiling as he noticed that the large slopes for skiing and snowboarding were located to the right of them, just outside of view from their perch.

"How did you find this place? It's so-" Draco stopped, not able to find the right word as he admired the view, backing up slightly from the window so his breath didn't create a fog against it. The room was quiet, but he heard small clinking sounds from glasses before Harry stepped up next to him, holding out a glass. Draco took it, thanking him quietly, smiling at his sincere expression.

"Magical?" Harry asked, completing Draco's previous statement. Draco chuckled but nodded, glancing out over the forest. "It actually is. The ley lines, they're so strong here that sometimes you can even see them if you know what to look out for." They both mutually fell silent, enjoying the view as the sun set behind the trees, casting the sky into a multitude of colours. Just as the sky began to turn a deep purple, something Draco never really noticed in sunsets, Harry stepped just behind him, pressing part of his chest against half of Draco's back, leaning forward and whispering into his ear. "There, just there! See it? They look like little sparks of light. They blend in with the snow, that's how many Muggles don't realise they've seen it." Harry pointed and Draco dragged his gaze across Harry's arm toward where he was pointing, studying the area. Finally, he saw it, little sparks dancing around in circles, almost as if they were alive and playing, before fading from view again. "Did you see?" he whispered, turning his head to look into Draco's eyes.

Draco was struck once again by those green eyes and the depth to them. They were close, almost sharing a breath and pressed against each other. It stole Draco's breath in a way that had never happened to him before. "Yes, I saw them. Thank you," he whispered back and watched as Harry's eyes lit up with glee before the man stepped back, taking a sip of his drink. Draco followed suit, drinking a bit more and looking back out the window. "It's so peaceful here. As if the rest of the world just falls away."

Harry agreed quietly and moved to sit in a very comfy looking chair, Draco followed and sat in the chair nearest to his. Draco's suspicions were confirmed, and he smiled as he sank into the comfortable chair. "You know," Harry began, talking in a regular voice that should've startled Draco from the loudness of it, but it didn't. "You should really take in everything that this resort has to offer." Draco laughed quietly, shaking his head as he remembered the conversation with his son.

"I'm not much of an athlete." He glanced toward Harry, who raised his eyebrows, before chuckling and adding, "Well, not anymore. I was never any good at it anyway, was I? Always losing to you."

"Always second to me, there's a big difference in that." Harry amended, leaning forward and smiling toward Draco, "You were incredibly talented on the field." Draco laughed and shook his head before Harry began talking again, causing him to glance back into those emerald eyes, "Though, I would love to see how you fare on the slopes. Would you care to join me there tomorrow?" Draco could see the mischief dancing in Harry's eyes, though it looked different than he remembered. Then it hit him- there was no malice in this look, nothing that said that Harry wanted harm to come to Draco, or for him to fall over and embarrass himself. This was pure wanting to spend time with Draco and perhaps tease him a bit. Draco nodded slowly, sighing.

"Sure, Harry. I may regret this, but sure." Draco had to tamp down a grin that threatened to split his face as Harry lit up with joy, taking a large swig from his glass. By now the sun had finally set completely, and lights were flickering on below them to light up the pavement.

"Let's head back then. We'll need our rest for tomorrow." Harry stood, offering his hand to Draco to help him up. For a split second, Draco wondered how he ended up here, making plans to spend a day with Harry Potter, and drinking fairly good whiskey together in such a beautiful place. But that second ended, and Draco took his hand, standing and beginning their way back toward their cabin.


	4. Chapter 4

Waking up early had never been a problem for Harry. Since his time on the run during the war, and after he joined the Auror force, his inner clock always knew just when the sun rose. He opened his eyes after a dreamless sleep (much more preferable than nightmares, in his opinion) and let his gaze wander across the wooden roof of his room. He took his time, remembering where he was and what he planned to do today. Glancing to his right, he eyed the bed next to him, and the sleeping lump that was tucked under a thick layer of blankets. The curtains to the windows were opened and the sunlight gently fell across the deep blue sheets, lighting up a blond tuft of hair sticking out from the top. Harry held in a chuckle at the sight, shaking his head and quietly sitting up in his bed and stretching. 

Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, Harry waited for the blood to flow properly before standing slowly. Halfway to standing upright, his right knee gave out and he sat back down on the bed with a huff, glaring down in offence at his limb. Closing his eyes, he reached forward, beginning a massage on the muscles around the knee. He still hated this, the fact that he had injured himself on the job so harshly that it now had lasting effects on his life. Reaching for the ointment he brought with him and stored in his nightstand, he opened the lid and rolled up his pyjama bottoms to show the knee. As he massaged the oil into his skin, he couldn't help but feel incompetent that he had let himself be so stupid.

"Is that some sort of healing cream?" The voice from behind him caused him to practically jump out of his skin, and he turned around in place to glance at Draco Malfoy sitting up in bed in the same position Harry was in, staring at him with nothing but curiosity on his face. Harry turned back around, redoubling his efforts in hopes that he could be done with this sooner.

"Yes." Was Harry's simple response, studying his knee and hoping Draco wouldn't push the issue.

"Is it injured? Your knee, I mean. Do you have to do this every morning?" Draco asked, and Harry heard the telltale signs of Draco standing and moving around the room as if to begin getting ready for the day. Harry held back a sigh, lowering his head further.

"It's a lasting injury. I don't need to do this every morning, just whenever it acts up." Draco hummed in response, though said nothing else. Harry hoped that he picked up on his closed-off tone of voice, and finished with what he was doing quickly.

Once they pushed passed the awkward morning encounter, things went pretty smoothly. They showered and readied themselves for the day, and even shared breakfast together in the cramped kitchen in companionable silence. Once Harry had finally finished his morning coffee, spying that Draco had finished his own morning tea, he placed his mug in the sink and turned around, placing his hands on the counter and leaning his back against it, studying the man. He smirked slightly when Draco shifted but didn't raise his head, and he knew that Draco could feel his eyes on him.

"Ready for the day?" Harry spoke quietly, afraid to break the serenity of their morning, and his smirk fell into something softer. "I was hoping we could have a rather active day today. The boys had said that the snowboarding slopes were fun. Perhaps that?" He watched Draco chew the question, his eyes swimming with thoughts that only he could comprehend. Harry realised that he'd only seen Draco this introspective since they'd arrived here, having never studied Draco while he was calm during school. If Draco had _ever_ been calm during school- Harry honestly doubted it. But he liked this Draco- the patient and intelligent one that thought things through before agreeing to anything. And, Harry decided, he liked watching as Draco did this. He seemed not to realise that his hands would twitch every so often, or that he chewed his bottom lip when a particularly hard decision had to be made.

"We could.\," Draco began, his voice just as quiet as Harry's had been, but he had a nervous look to his eyes. He placed a finger on the handle of his mug and began to spin the porcelain around, biting his lip once more and drawing Harry's attention to them. "However I have never done it before. I'm not exactly sure how good I would be at it." Harry took a deep breath and tore his eyes away from the soft sight before him, glancing down to study the tile pattern beneath his feet.

"I've only really done it once before, last year when Albus, James and I came here. I'm sure you'll be able to do it though. It's mainly just balancing on the board beneath your feet- sort of like broom riding." He glanced up again, catching Draco staring at him with slight disbelief on his face, though the other man decided not to comment. He just nodded, standing and walking over to set his mug in the sink as well.

"I guess we should dress warmly then." Draco leaned closer, almost pressing his chest against Harry's own and Harry felt his breath catch. Draco tilted his head, but Harry began to notice that his gaze wasn't on Harry himself, but something over his shoulder. "Has it even stopped snowing once since we arrived?" Harry felt soft breaths against his cheek as Draco spoke, but didn't dare try to answer. He wasn't sure what he would have said, though he was more afraid of his ability to speak- and the severe lack of that ability when Draco was so close.

Draco finally took a step back, and in the light of the morning sun shining through the windows Harry spied a flush lighting up his cheeks. It was horribly adorable to him, though Draco began to walk away quickly before Harry could get a good look at it. Watching him leave the kitchen, Harry spun around in place and leaned against the counter, taking a deep breath and staring out of the window that had been behind him. Snow flurries were still falling, though lighter than it had been last night. Leaning over the sink, Harry bent down to look up at the sky and noticed a blanket of grey with no breaks. Humming quietly to himself about this, he hoped the resort personnel were used to this sort of weather and could keep up.

Taking a minute to compose himself, he leaned back and watched as the snow fell gently and little sparks of magic appeared and disappeared just as quickly, matching the colour of the snow to the point that it wouldn't be visible to an untrained eye. Hearing a commotion of falling things and rushing, and a few whispered curse words, Harry turned and walked to the archway between the kitchen and hall. He spied Scorpius attempting to pick up a ski and slide a boot on at the same time, tossing the ski haphazardly back into his room before shutting the door and beginning a rush down the hall. Scorpius started once he saw Harry, placing a hand on his chest and chuckling before shaking his head. "Oh, sorry Mr Potter. I'm in a rush. I told Albus I'd meet him at the indoor pool soon- but that was before I ended up falling right back to sleep. He's probably bloody pissed at me right now." Harry raised an eyebrow, but smirked, watching as Scorpius flushed from embarrassment. 

"Sure, go on." Harry nudged his head toward the front door and watched Scorpius smile and nod before heading over that direction. Biting his lip, Harry called out and stopped him for a moment, smiling at the boy. "I'm very glad that Albus was able to find such a good friend. I was a little worried, with his introverted tendencies, that he wouldn't be able to find any close friends. But you're a good boy, very well behaved. I appreciate that." Harry stopped his rambling, scratching the back of his head. "Alright, that's all I wanted to say. Now go make sure he hasn't drowned or anything." Harry made a shooing motion and Scorpius nodded, rushing out the door quickly as if wanting to escape the little moment Harry had forced between them. 

Harry sighed in the silence that followed, glancing around the cabin. He couldn't think of why he had felt the need to say that to him, but he felt weirdly relieved that he did. Finally, he started walking toward his shared room to prepare for his day in the snow.

\---

While Harry knew the basics of snowboarding from his trip last year, Draco had absolutely no clue (and Harry was fine with a refresher course). They sat and listened to the basics from the daily lesson the resort provided, then strapped up and wandered outside to begin practising. Harry found himself laughing a lot, both with and at Draco as he fell over into the snow multiple times. And of course, Draco being the vindictive person he is, ended up pushing Harry into the snow when he wasn't looking. Laughing and shaking his head, he eyed Draco and planned a counterattack before Draco offered a hand to help him back up., Harry just let it slide, though he took the moment that they stood so close together to study Draco's flushed face. _'Probably just from the cold weather,_ ' Harry thought to himself, but he couldn't help but find it terribly attractive anyway.

As they agreed that they'd like to try riding down a slope for once, they hopped onto a lift together, Draco holding onto the bars very tightly. Harry reached over to place a hand on his knee, hoping to reassure him, and smiled at the man as he turned to look at him. Harry always knew that Draco was attractive, though he had pushed that thought to the very back of his mind when he was younger. The fact that Draco had been a bully in school kept Harry from really contemplating that fact. Though, he wasn't much of a bully now, was he? And now Harry couldn't help but wonder how one person could be so attractive in so many different ways. 

The 'bunny slope' was the shortest one making it the easiest to use, and was the first stop on the lift, making Harry and Draco jump off not too long after they had gotten on. Draco stumbled a bit so Harry reached out to help steady him, grinning as Draco rolled his eyes. He could practically hear the man's thoughts of 'always has to be the hero' playing through his head as they straighten up before they made their way to the edge of the slope.

"Think you'll be able to handle it, Malfoy?" Harry challenged, raising his eyebrows and grinning toward him. Draco sucked in a breath, obviously wanting to immediately say that he could, but he glanced toward the hill they were on and thought about it before nodding slowly.

"It's my first time, I don't expect to be perfect, Potter," Draco replied, and Harry just chuckled in response, nodding along.

"You take the fun out of it! I was going to bet you that I would do better than you!"

"Why would I take that bet? You told me you've done this before, I'm obviously at a disadvantage." Draco reasoned, turning toward him and raising his own eyebrow. This just caused Harry to laugh loudly, throwing his head back in humour. Once he calmed down he nodded along, nudging Draco's arm.

"You think too logically. Just take the bet, Draco. Have some fun. The loser has to buy the winner a warm drink when we're done." He grinned, watching Draco fight to keep a smile off of his face at the compliment. Draco sighed loudly, obviously just for show, before smiling and nodding toward Harry.

"Fine, fine. Agreed." Draco began placing himself the way he was taught, glancing down to his feet to make sure he was in the correct position. Harry chewed on his lip as he watched, tilting his head to the side and hoping that Draco didn't fall his first time down- which was rather likely. Harry fell a few too many times when he was first learning with Albus and James. 

Draco finally pushed off, maintaining his balance and sliding down the easy slope. There was a close call halfway down when he almost lost his balance, but he managed to regain it and slide beautifully down. He looked like a natural and Harry felt a bit of jealousy at the fact that he hadn't fallen- even if he had hoped for this outcome. Harry grinned when Draco paused at the bottom, then started spinning around and throwing his fist into the air as if he was super proud of what he accomplished. He started chuckling when Draco turned around and started waving at Harry, then placed his hands on his hips as if to say 'your turn!'

Setting himself up and sliding his goggles onto his nose, he wiggled a bit in place to watch Draco laugh before launching himself down the slope, sliding down a little faster than Draco had done- or so it seemed to Harry in the moment. Swerving slightly to maintain balance, Harry grinned, watching as Draco appeared closer by the second. Suddenly pain shot up his leg from his right knee, and he cursed under his breath, trying to maintain form before putting a bit too much pressure on his right leg. The pain shot up stronger than before and he felt himself buckle, falling into the snow and rolling down the rest of the hill. He came to a stop fairly soon- he had been close to the bottom when it happened- but he kept his eyes closed, the snow on his back. He felt ashamed and disappointed in himself. He couldn't even snowboard without his knee acting up? Would his past mistake keep him from doing anything he wanted to do? 

"Harry!" He heard his name called, a bit of worry laced in the voice and he took a deep breath, using his arms to push himself up. 

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" he yelled out, not exactly able to see much with his goggles covered in snow. Raising his gloved hands, they slipped a few times but he was able to tear the offending things off, glancing up to see Draco hovering above him with a worried expression.

"I'd laugh for the fall, but it looked like that really hurt. Was it-" Draco visibly stopped himself from finishing the sentence, and Harry sighed, glancing toward the snow surrounding them. 

"Sir, are you alright?" Harry glanced up quickly and noticed the thick red uniform the nurses wore around the slopes, and he sighed, nodding. He attempted to stand but the board got in his way, Draco reached forward quickly to help him up. His knee twinged again and he winced but nodded toward the nurse.

"I'm fine ma'am," Harry assured, but the nurse didn't move. "I assure you, it's just a past injury. It acts up sometimes, especially in the cold. I just need to lay off of it for a while."

"You didn't get hurt on the way down? Bump into any rocks?" The question reminded him of the night before, and Scorpius, and he laughed, shaking his head toward the nurse. He wondered if it was the same one.

"No, no rocks. I didn't roll that much anyway, I'm fine." Harry assured again, realizing he was still slightly leaning on Draco who had both of his hands on Harry's arm. Harry gently pulled his arm back, while Draco took a step away as if he was worried he offended but didn't want to get too far in case Harry fell again.

"Are you sure you're okay sir? If a past injury is acting up, then I'd advise you not to go up the slopes again," the nurse said, crossing her arms and studying him. She had almost a knowing look in her eye, and Harry nodded toward her, trying to maintain a serious face.

"I'm fine, really. Though I'll take your advice. Thank you." He watched her huff and begin to walk away, and Harry relaxed slightly, shaking his head. "Well, that was an ordeal. That has to be the same nurse that Scorpius came across."

"Seems so. She was studying us so intently as if she recognised us and figured we were the same as them," Draco mumbled, eyeing the nurse from afar, and Harry just chuckled in response.

"Well, enough of that. You can go up again if you'd like. I can watch from here." Harry waved his hand as if to shoo Draco up the slope, but he saw the other man hesitate and begin thinking. He bit his lip and Harry had to fight the urge to stare at the motion while the man was looking at him.

"Actually, I think I'm owed a hot beverage. Let's get inside, Harry," Draco replied in a quiet tone of voice, smiling and reaching over to help him walk toward the nearby cabin.

\---

They spent the rest of the day inside, Harry trying to convince Draco to try different Muggle beverages. He had the hardest time convincing Draco to try some hot cocoa- which blew Harry's mind that the man had never drunk it before, he was sure it wasn't just a Muggle thing- but once he tried it he refused to drink anything else. Harry had no clue that Draco was so addicted to chocolate. When he said this to Draco, he proceeded to listen to a story about Draco's mother sending him various chocolates from all over the world to try while they were in Hogwarts. Draco didn't seem too worried about his love for it, but Harry could tell he was slightly sad when he mentioned that he hadn't had as much as he would've liked while teaching during the school year. 

Time flew by, and before they realised, it was nearing dinner time. Draco seemed reluctant to leave the hot cocoa behind but agreed when Harry expressed it was time to meet the boys in the dining hall. They ran into the boys just outside the hall on the way in- Albus and Scorpius both slightly dripping with water and wearing swimming trunks and t-shirts inside the warm building, towels around their necks. When asked, they showed bags they were carrying that held all of their warm clothes they needed to travel back to the cabin. Entering the dining hall, they took a table near the window and placed their orders with a waitress that appeared right away. Harry noticed Draco glance outside, the snow falling heavier and blowing diagonally as if it was just about to storm. Harry took a deep breath and hoped it would let up enough when they went to go back to their cabin.

Looking back to the table, the boys were scrambling in their bags to pull out jackets to fight the cold that was emanating from the nearby window, and Harry chuckled at the sight, grinning at them. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Draco glanced away from the window and at him at the sound, and he smirked toward him before looking back at his son. They began chatting amiably, Albus explaining that they had been swimming most of the day while taking breaks to eat or go to the sauna earlier. Harry nodded along, interested in what his son had to say, and eager to find out about all the new moves that the swimming instructor had taught them, and how long he could apparently hold his breath underwater.

"What were you up to today, dad?" Scorpius finally asked during a lull in the conversation, and Draco smiled in response, patting his mouth before beginning to explain their day. Not three sentences in Albus interrupted him, a shocked look on his face.

"Wait, you two spent the day together?" Harry furrowed his brow, glancing at the twin faces of shock on the two boys, then glanced toward Draco to see the confusion on his face as well before he sighed, shaking his head and holding a hand out toward his son.

"Apologise for interrupting, Albus, that was rude." He waited for the mumbled apology before nodding. "Yes, we spent the day together. Is that a problem?"

"No!" The outburst from Scorpius startled him, and he jumped, pausing his hand halfway between his plate and mouth, raising his eyebrows at him. Draco scolded him quietly for the loud noise and Scorpius mumbled an apology similar to Albus before he leaned forward, grinning. "Wait, but, does this mean you guys are friends now?" Harry studied the excited nature of the young boy- and wow, did he look so much like a young Draco, but a _happier_ version of him- and he nodded slowly, finally putting the bite of his food into his mouth and chewing while he studied the reactions around the table.

Eventually, Draco resumed his story, laughing about Harry's fall (now that he knew he was alright), though speaking fairly little about their time afterwards spent trying out different drinks. He enthused to Scorpius about the wonders of hot cocoa, causing Albus to find out that Scorpius hadn't tried the drink either and the immediate determination that filled Albus' eyes at the news reminded Harry of Ginny- he knew that Draco wouldn't be the only one trying new things tonight. The dinner passed by quickly and joyously, ending in a dessert course that filled the table with the scent of chocolate.

Finishing, Harry and Draco bid their sons goodnight- Albus dragging Scorpius immediately over to the bar to order some hot cocoa- and they shared a comfortably quiet walk back to the cabin. The snow had lightened up enough to see, though both of them shivered and rubbed their arms to try to retain some heat. 

"We have alcohol back in the cabin, yeah?" Draco asked, and Harry glanced over to notice a slight shivering in him. 

"Yeah, we still have half the bottle that we were drinking from last night." They walked faster when the snow started falling heavier once more, and they both sighed a (visible) breath of relief once the cabin came into view. Hurrying inside quickly, Harry chuckled as he motioned Draco toward where he stored the alcohol, moving to start a fire in the fireplace in the sitting room. It seemed a bit dusty from disuse, but Harry quickly changed that once the fire started. The sound of clinking glasses told Harry that Draco had joined him in the sitting room, and he moved back to sit on the smaller couch, plopping down next to Draco and taking the glass he was offered, immediately taking a sip.

"Why do you think they were so surprised that we spent the day together?" Draco mumbled, causing Harry to glance over and spy his introspective look. He began to bite his lip, and Harry wondered whether he knew he asked the question out loud or not.

"It's not like we were exactly friends before this trip." Harry hated to point it out and felt slightly guilty once Draco lowered his glass to his lap, tapping the rim of it a few times, remaining quiet. "But I had a good time. I know I told them we were friends back at dinner without asking, I'm sorry if I pushed that too far?"

"No, no." Draco waved a hand, raising his glass to take a sip before shaking his head again. "I'd like to consider us friends if you agree."

"I agree," Harry whispered immediately, smirking. He watched Draco glance up quickly, surprised, before lowering his gaze again. 

"I should- uh, I should take a shower. Before I get drunk off of this, I mean." He mumbled, tilting his glass around before placing it on a side table, standing and turning toward Harry. "I'd like to spend the day with you again tomorrow if you're amicable?" Harry chuckled, nodding.

"Of course I am. Have a nice shower, Draco." Harry had to physically restrain himself from winking after that statement, though a blush seemed to rise on Draco's cheeks anyway as he nodded and made his way down the hall. Taking a deep breath, Harry wondered why exactly he felt such a strong need to flirt with Draco. 

His brain started supplying him with many different pictures of Draco during the time they'd spent together, looking thoughtful and beautiful- almost ethereal in the snow. He thought of their casual banter, how easy it was just to talk to him, and how Draco was so much more intelligent and _soft_ than Harry had originally thought. It was rather an easy question to answer, then, why Harry wanted to flirt with him so much. Harry bit his lip, letting his head fall back against the couch as he realised that he had a serious crush on the man.


	5. Chapter 5

It seemed the best way to wake up, with sunshine lighting up the back of his eyelids, the soft caress of wind blowing gently against his skin from the open window. Of course, since the window was open then the entire room ended up freezing, though Draco felt completely warm under his comforter. He snuggled deeper into his pillow, knowing he was awake but still wishing to prolong the warmth and comfort. He felt wind gently rustle his hair again and smiled calmly, laying there peacefully.

"Bloody hell, why is the room freezing?" he heard groaned from the other side of the room, and Draco began to smother a smile before realising his comforter was pulled over his face. He let himself smile, unseen, as he heard Harry loudly sit up from his bed. "Why is the bloody window open, Merlin!" Harry quickly ran across the cold wood floor, and once Draco began hearing the window shut, he peeked his eyes out of the covers, letting his nose and mouth stay in the warmth just a little longer while watching Harry. He only wore his pants, not even pyjama bottoms this time. No wonder he was freezing.

Watching as Harry turned around, he smothered a giggle that arose when Harry jumped, startled, at the fact that Draco was watching him. However, the resulting smile that Draco received afterwards from Harry had his stomach flipping weirdly, so he burrowed back into his blanket, letting darkness consume his dread.

"Draco," Harry carried out the last syllable, saying his name in a sweet tone of voice. "It's time to wake up," Again, carrying the last syllable and in that tone of voice, Draco narrowed his eyes at nothing under his blanket. He had to be planning something. He listened for a moment but didn't hear anything, so he slowly rose his eyes out from the comforter again before being whacked over the head by a pillow.

Startled, Draco shot back and blinked wide-eyed at Harry, who was now laughing loudly. Attempting to refrain from pouting (though, he doubted he did a very good job), Draco wiggled in place and crossed his arms, glaring at Harry. "That was uncalled for."

"It was completely called for! You weren't getting up! You forced me to get up to close the window that _you_ left open last night!" Harry said all of this amidst laughs, with a happiness in his eyes that proved he wasn't actually mad about anything. Draco glanced down at Harry's body again- only covered in pants, still- and blushed slightly as he turned his gaze away from Harry altogether.

"Perhaps you should wear a bit more to bed considering it apparently snows constantly up here. That way you wouldn't be cold in the morning." Draco talked petulantly, raising his chin slightly.

"No, I'm pretty sure it was the window you left open that made me cold," Harry replied calmly, his laughs finally running out. He said this softly though, which caused Draco to glance over in curiosity. Harry was staring at him with a weird expression, one he wasn't too familiar with before the man shook his head and wandered over to his dresser. He began withdrawing some clothes, grinning all the while. "By the way, what did you want us to do today?"

Draco preened a bit on the inside, not quite hiding a smile at the fact that Harry already assumed they would be doing things together again today. "Well there's still the sauna I haven't tried yet, or we could take those swimming lessons that Al and Scorp had taken before." Draco listed off what he could remember, glancing up toward the ceiling in thought.

"There's also the ice skating rink. We could try that," Harry suggested, grinning and stepping into his jeans, and Draco moved his gaze back to him and smiled in return.

"Well, we have plenty of days to try out all of the activities, anyway." Draco shrugged, moving to get out of bed.

"Together?" Harry asked, his voice slightly quieter than before, and Draco met his eyes, smiling and nodding.

"Of course. It'd be awfully dull to do all of this by ourselves."

\---

Spending that day and the next two together, Draco and Harry covered a lot of ground concerning the amenities that the resort provided. They laughed at each other as both learned to ice skate and fell over multiple times; they made small inside jokes about the swimming instructor and others at the lesson to pass the time during their class; and both men blushed as they sat in the sauna, the only piece of fabric covering their bodies being a towel around their waist (though, obviously they were blushing because the sauna was hot, right?).

All the while, Draco was surprised about the amount of snow that fell throughout the week. Almost nonstop, small flurries would fall atop their hair (and seeing the small flecks in Harry's salt and pepper hair did _not_ bring butterflies to his stomach, Draco would assure you), though sometimes a storm would pass through and the snow would fall heavier, obscuring the view in front of them as they walked to their cabin. If at one point the men had to hold hands to not lose sight of each other, Draco wasn't exactly complaining. He knew his old crush was resurfacing fast, almost drowning him in the emotions it was causing.

Dinners with their sons became increasingly fun and comfortable as time went on, and Draco always enjoyed hearing about their adventures, and the injuries they inevitably received after each one. He could tell quickly that Albus and Scorpius enjoyed seeing their fathers bonding over this vacation as well, and it felt good to make his son happy in a way that also made him extremely happy. He enjoyed all the time he could spend with Harry, getting to know him slowly and snarking at him, watching as Harry's smile lit up every room and his eyes showed a pure kind of happiness that Draco had always craved.

Waking up to a dark room, Draco breathed out slowly, wondering why he had woken up before dawn. He almost wished that it could be bright outside already so that Harry and he could go try ice skating again as they had planned for the day, but he knew he wouldn't be able to fall back asleep to pass the time. Keeping that in mind, Draco rose softly from his bed, making his way quietly to the hall, closing the door gently as to not wake Harry. It almost threw Draco, the amount of darkness that permeated in the cabin. Furrowing his eyebrows, Draco walked into the sitting room, glancing around and immediately realised something was wrong. There were usually lights by the pavement outside, and they shone directly through the window of the sitting room so it was never truly dark in the cabin, even at night.

Rubbing his hand against the wall, he found and flicked on the light switch to the sitting room, walked to the aforementioned window and opened the curtains, blinking at what he saw on the other side of the glass. A blanket of white covered the entire window, and Draco shivered slightly from the cold permeating from the glass, he moved quickly to the front door, turning the knob as he pulled it open. Staring at the wall of snow was almost surreal, and he found himself slightly amazed at how it all stayed frozen together, holding up a barrier to the outside world. Closing the door, he moved quickly to the back door he had found at one point during their week, a small door that was hidden from sight behind the kitchen, and looked through the four-paned windows in the door to see a wall of white there too.

Rubbing his forehead, Draco sighed and tried to remain calm. Sure they were trapped in the cabin, but they had plenty of firewood inside. They could just build a fire in the fireplace to keep warm. They had plenty of food stocked in their cabin to last them, so he wasn't too worried about that either. Supposing he should let the rest of them know, Draco wandered back into his room, glancing over toward Harry who was already sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes.

"Oh, hey Draco. This is weird, 'innit? I never wake up before the sun." Harry chuckled, his voice deep from just waking up, and Draco took a deep breath to quell the emotions that caused within him.

"Actually, I'm not sure if the sun is up. My internal clock is rather perfect, I should say, so I assume it's about dawn, maybe a little after." Draco wandered over toward their window, ignoring Harry's confused face for the time being. He threw open the curtains, revealing the pure white sheet that covered this window as well, turning back around with his hands on his hips to glance at Harry, who had realisation dawning on his face. "I tried both the front and back door. We're trapped inside by the snow. I'm sure if we used our magic we could blast our way out, or something more subtle. But I'm sure the resort employees are digging through all this snow and will find us eventually. Wouldn't want to use magic to get out and find them there witnessing it. Also, there's the whole ley line thing you've explained before." Draco waved his hand around as he thought out loud, rambling on, "So I don't know. I guess we should just start a fire, cook some breakfast and wait, right? Is there even any way to notify the staff that we're snowed in?"

"There's a landline phone here, I saw it in the sitting room- if the snow hasn't cut off our power. Let's just get dressed and wake the boys up," Harry suggested, standing and stretching again, Draco studying his back muscles flexing for a moment before shaking his head and moving to turn on the light for their room.

"The power works, for now," Draco stated the obvious, a bit flustered from seeing Harry in just his pants once again, moving to leave the room and closing the door behind him. He stared at the door across from him for a moment before sighing, moving to knock on the door. At no response, he knocked harder, calling out their names. Not even a groan or movement could be heard, so Draco slowly opened the door, peeking inside. Their beds were empty, their room a mess, and neither boy in sight. Confused, Draco opened the door all the way, walked in and looked around before moving to search the rest of the house, finding them nowhere. "Harry!"

Draco stood in the sitting room, heart beating faster than normal, bringing his hands together and wringing them nervously. Harry came in with his bright smile, eyebrows raised. "What's up?"

"I can't find them. They're not here." Draco said quickly, staring at him. "I checked their room and the entire cabin, they're not here. The snow must've taken all night to pile this high. Where are they? Did they come to the cabin last night? Where did they say they were going after dinner?" Draco began rambling, glancing around the room quickly as his brain rushed, trying to conjure up an image that wasn't them frozen to death in the forest outside.

"Hey, Draco- hey, calm down it's okay. They're fine." Harry came forward quickly, placing his hands over Draco's fidgeting ones, and leaned close, taking up his personal space. "Take a deep breath for me, can you do that?" Draco finally focused his eyes on Harry's hands around his own, and then his emerald eyes. He nodded to the question, taking in a deep breath, then letting it out as Harry did, matching his breathing to the other man's. "They're safe. I have complete faith in those boys. Even if they managed to be stuck somewhere, they're smart and resourceful. Everything is okay."

Suddenly, a harsh ringing sound cut through the air, startling Draco who jumped and glanced around quickly. He had never heard anything so harsh and annoying, he thought idly to himself and saw a small curved plastic _thing_ sitting on a desk near them, vibrating slightly from the shrill ring it was emitting. Draco glared at it in offence, ignoring Harry's chuckling as the man walked over to it, picking up the top plastic piece and putting it against his ear.

"Hello?" Harry answered, and Draco assumed this was some kind of phone- the 'landline' that Harry had mentioned before most likely. "Yes, that's us… Yes, we were just about to call to inform you that… Actually, we're not all accounted for. The two adults are inside the cabin, myself included, but our two teenage sons aren't here with us. Their names are Scorpius and Albus… Mhm, thank you so much, please keep in touch." Harry placed the phone back onto the holder before turning around and smiling toward Draco. "They said that there are employees on the way right now to dig us out. They're very experienced with this sort of thing, so that's good, but there are many cabins that are snowed in currently. And since we're the last one on this block, it might be a while before they start on our cabin. They also said that many residents had stayed the night inside complimentary rooms in the main building since it was storming so hard last night, and our sons might be among them. They said they'll ask after them and call us back once they've located them." Draco nodded slowly, taking a deep breath again and letting it out.

"Well, I guess we're stuck here for now." Draco said, _'Together, alone,'_ he added as an afterthought in his head before he bit his lip and glanced away, his eyes landed on the kitchen. "I guess we should start with breakfast, then?"

\---

Over the course of the day, they ate their breakfast, received a call saying that Scorpius and Albus had indeed stayed perfectly safe in a complimentary room and were now swimming in the pool in the main building, and Harry had managed to locate an antique analogue clock inside one of the desk drawers that was still ticking along. It seemed like the right time, but they didn't risk casting a Tempus to check, so they placed it on the desk and referred to it for the time whenever they wanted lunch, or later an afternoon drink.

Harry eventually withdrew a pack of cards from his suitcase and they sat on the floor, the coffee table between them, playing a variety of card games. They were fairly evenly matched when playing most games, though after a few hours of cards Draco eventually threw his hand onto the table, loudly proclaiming, "I'm bored!"

"That's what the cards are supposed to be for, Draco." Harry chuckled, though followed suit and laid his own cards down on the table.

"Well, it worked the first two, three hours of playing cards. Now it's just getting boring and repetitive." Draco crossed his arms, huffing before reaching out to take his glass, tipping back the rest of the whiskey that was in it. "I need more drink." He stood, feeling buzzed but not drunk, and moved to the kitchen, spying the clock on the way that said it was about dinnertime. "Harry! What is something we can eat for dinner that won't kill us if we make it while drunk?" he yelled from the kitchen, glancing around the room before opening the whiskey bottle and pouring himself another glass.

A deep chuckle resounded from behind him and an arm reached around, tugging his glass away. "Perhaps you should stop drinking, if you're getting drunk so early then, hm?" Harry had a playful smile on his face, raising his eyebrows. Draco just scoffed in return, taking his glass back.

"And what else is there to do in this dull cabin, hm? Play cards for another three hours?" He took a sip though, not wanting to get too intoxicated around Harry. His crush, whom he was locked inside a cabin with all day.

"Well, I'll make us something to eat. You go sit by the fire and try to think up something to do after dinner, then?" Harry suggested, raising his eyebrows and grinning. Draco narrowed his eyes, taking this as a challenge and lifting his chin, went back to the sitting room to sink into a comfy chair by the fire. He heard pans clinking together in the kitchen, the sink running once or twice, but he wasn't paying too much attention. He tapped his glass with his fingers, taking a few sips but not too many. What _was_ there to do? Sure, he brought a book to read, but that wasn't an activity they could both do. And Draco still wanted to bond a little more with Harry, to get to know him better.

Tilting his head, he thought of that again, before smirking, an idea catching. Harry finally called out that dinner was ready, so Draco set his glass down on the coffee table, and made his way back to the kitchen. He sat at the small table there, smiling up and thanking Harry when he sat their plates down on the table, taking a seat across from Draco.

"It's a bit weird," Harry began, picking up his fork and poking at his pork chop and mashed potatoes. "Having dinner without the boys." Draco took a bite of his own pork chop, smiling at the taste. Another thing learned, that Harry could cook really well.

"It is. But one night won't kill anyone. I do wonder how much longer we'll have to wait to be dug out, though," Draco responded, digging into his food. He complimented the cooking and felt a warm feeling spread through his chest when he saw Harry try to smother a grin in response. They ate quickly, not saying much but sitting in companionable silence. Draco stood once finished, taking Harry's empty plate as well and moving to wash the dishes.

"I could have done that," Harry mumbled, coming up to lean against the counter next to him.

"You cooked, Harry. It's only fair that I wash up afterwards." He smiled toward Harry, before placing the last dish in the drainer. "Besides, you told me to think of something to do after dinner, and I have." He watched as Harry raised an eyebrow toward him before grinning, grabbing the bottle of whiskey they had been nursing before walking directly back to the sitting room without another word. He spied Harry's empty glass sitting next to the clock on the desk and snagged it, moving back to the coffee table and sitting on the floor, filling his glass and topping Draco's own.

"Let's play Never Have I Ever," Draco presented, grinning and sliding Harry's glass across the table to where he was beginning to sit again.

"Oh, really? I haven't played that for years. Not since before James was born." Harry remarked, but smiled nonetheless and nodded, getting comfortable in place.

"I haven't played since eighth year. I'll admit, it's definitely more fun with a larger group, though having just two people _can_ have its advantages." Draco smirked, spinning his glass on the table. "Would you like to start?"

Harry hummed, reaching forward to grasp his cup in his hand, letting it rest there as he studied Draco. Draco tried not to fidget under his gaze, holding his poker face proudly before raising an eyebrow. "Never have I ever," Harry began quietly, smirking before lifting his chin to continue, "sabotaged a classmate's potion during class." Draco narrowed his eyes, but smirked nonetheless and took a sip from his glass.

"That was a cheap shot," Draco mumbled, causing Harry to chuckle loudly, nodding toward him.

"Just wanted to get this started with something easy, yeah?" Harry replied, raising his eyebrows and lifting his glass, already prepared to take a drink to whatever Draco said next. Draco just chuckled in response, shaking his head, but smiling.

"Sure. Never have I ever tried to bollocks my way through a class because I didn't study." Draco raised his eyebrows, smirking as Harry rolled his eyes and took a drink.

"I had Hermione, so it wasn't as bad as it would have been without her. But I _was_ a bit busy during school." Harry shrugged, unapologetic, and Draco chuckled and nodded.

"Yeah, everyone knew that Hermione was the only reason you and Ron stayed afloat during school."

"Damn right," Harry mumbled, grinning before setting his glass down and tapping the side of it with his fingers. "Never have I ever climbed a tree to try to impress somebody." Draco narrowed his eyes, remaining still for a second longer than he probably should before slowly letting out a breath and reaching for his glass, taking a sip of his drink, a glare focused on the other man. Harry laughed loudly, grinning broadly in response. "I didn't think that'd actually work! Hermione told me that's why you did that, but I didn't really believe her!"

"You should know by now to never question our fearless Minister," Draco mumbled, rolling his eyes and placing his glass back on the coffee table, placing his fingers on the rim of the glass and staring into the liquid.

"Well- I mean, she's not Minister yet, she's just in the running," Harry replied, furrowing his brows, but with a small smile on his lips. Draco raised one eyebrow, glancing up to meet his eyes.

"If you don't believe she's already won the spot even before the voting, you're mental," Draco replied easily, smiling softly. "She's spectacular at what she does, and all of her plans are well thought out and reasonable. Plus, she's a part of the Golden Trio," he insisted, waving his hand toward Harry to include him as well. "She's practically Minister already."

"Yeah," Harry agreed, his smile widening, "You're right."

"I know," Draco replied, raising his chin and grinning, before tapping the rim of his glass. "Anyway. Never have I ever let someone remove all the bones from my arm after a simple break." Watching Harry groan loudly and take a large gulp from his glass was entertaining, and Draco chuckled, smiling along with him.

"I have so many regrets," Harry mumbled but grinned nonetheless. "Though, this isn't exactly fair, is it?" Draco raised an eyebrow, confusion lacing his features. "We're saying things we already know about each other. Let's ask questions we don't know." Harry grinned, and Draco chuckled softly before nodding. Harry hummed, reaching forward to take an upside-down card from the table and spin it around in his hands. "Never have I ever had a pet that wasn't an owl."

Draco smirked, raising the glass to take a drink. Harry raised his eyebrows in a silent plea to continue and Draco chuckled in response, shrugging. "As a child, I had a snake in my room. I do believe that serpent hated me, it was always trying to bite me. Now I have a cat. She likes to roam around the castle, so she doesn't exactly belong to me, but she always comes back to my room to sleep. I feed her, though I assume she has the same arrangement with many others in the castle." Draco shrugged, glancing up from the table to meet Harry's eyes, blushing slightly at the fond look the man was giving him. "Enough about that though. Never have I ever partied so hard that I woke up somewhere other than mine or my friend's home."

Draco watched as Harry tilted his head in thought, laying the card he had been holding down before reaching for his glass slowly. Finally, he sighed, taking a drink from his glass. Draco laughed in astonishment, leaning forward to hear this story. "The night started at the Leaky with Ron, Seamus, and Dean. I believe that was the night I came out to my friends as bisexual." Draco blinked quickly a few times, trying to register this information even as Harry continued his story as if nothing happened, "We began drinking a lot. I don't know if it was in celebration of me liking dick, or if it was to congratulate me on coming out of the closet. Either way, all I know is we ended up going to three different bars, and I woke up leaning against the wall to Ollivanders. My shirt was soaked in alcohol, it was raining pretty heavily, and I was missing a shoe." Draco laughed, leaning back and grinning. "I wasn't the worst off one though. Ron had woken up in a cornfield without any of his clothes on, except a pair of Luna's spectrespecs in a _lovely_ orange colour that matched his hair." Draco threw his head back laughing so hard, eventually letting himself fall onto his back on the floor, attempting to calm down. He could imagine it perfectly, too.

"I can't believe that's an actual thing that happened. Though, oddly," Draco began, sitting up and wiping his eyes, "I actually _can_ believe it, is the problem." Draco let out a breath, glancing up to where Harry had just finished laughing along. "Okay, okay. Your turn."

Harry bit his lip, studying Draco before taking the card he had been messing with before, spinning it and flicking the edge of it. "Never have I ever," he began hesitantly, glancing up quickly to Draco's eyes before looking back down toward the card. He took a deep breath, continuing in a quiet tone of voice, "Never have I ever married out of obligation instead of love." Draco studied him as he asked this. He was visibly nervous about crossing such a boundary, but Draco just took a deep breath, reaching forward for his glass and took a large drink from it.

"Yeah," Draco agreed quietly, placing the glass down gently before spinning it, staring at the sloshing liquid inside. "Astoria and I married for convenience and obligation. Though, I would never take it back. It resulted in Scorpius' birth, which is the greatest thing that's ever happened to me." Draco kept his eyes on the whiskey, afraid of what he might see if he looked up. "Though once he was born, we began to realise that we were our own people- Astoria and I. We realised that while we were good friends, we weren't happy together. And we didn't want to grow a distaste for one another over time forced together. We decided, mutually, to split up. There's nothing much a gay man and a lesbian woman can do together, anyway, in that context." Draco bit his lip again, taking a deep breath through his nose before finally looking up to meet Harry's eyes. Though, he didn't see the disdain or revulsion he expected. He saw compassion, understanding, and perhaps a bit of pity. He didn't exactly want to be pitied, but he'd take that over what he had expected any day.

"I'm glad you found your way out of that situation," Harry replied quietly, placing the card he had been messing with in the middle of the table, having come close to almost ripping it while he had fidgeted. "Also, you didn't have to share that. I wasn't trying to force you to." Draco watched Harry lower his eyes before smiling softly, reaching across to place his hand on Harry's.

"I shared because I wanted to," Draco insisted softly, nodding toward Harry. He waited for the man's smile to reappear before leaning backwards, placing his hands together in his lap. "Never have I ever done something at work that resulted in a lifelong injury?" Draco formed it as a question, even though he knew the answer. He bit his lip, having wondered this since he had first seen Harry apply the medicine to his knee, though not knowing if he was pushing too far. He watched Harry take a deep breath, spin his glass three times before raising it and drinking a large gulp as Draco had before.

"It was toward the beginning of my career. Ron wasn't Head Auror yet, we were actually partners at the time. I should have listened to him, I should have-" He stopped himself, taking a deep breath and setting his glass on the table, pulling his hands together to fidget them, staring to the left of Draco as if lost in his own world. "I've always known that Ron was very strategic. Even during first year, he had solved the giant Wizarding chess board that helped us get through the enchantments. He's a master at strategy. So when he said that I should go into the manor house through the back with three other men, not through the side door by myself, I should have listened." He took a deep breath, shaking his head. "There were Death Eaters there. It was rumoured that Rodolphus Lestrange was hiding out there. We had to catch him. We _had_ to." Draco watched as Harry began to pick at the side of his fingers, and wanted nothing more than to reach over and get him to stop before he hurt himself.

"I was being stupid. I charged in through the first door I saw. I fell into eight different traps, four that were designed to kill, one that stunned, and three that tortured. The only reason I survived was that Ron had followed me. He attempted to grab me before I opened the door, but he wasn't quick enough so he cast the largest shield spell he knew. The only traps that got through were a _Crucio_ that lasted five seconds and a _Diffindo_ that had been redirected by the shield. It had been aimed for my neck but hit my knee instead. It-" He took a deep breath, shaking his head, "It was gory. I will spare the details, but it was bad." He shook his head once again, shrugging. "I wasn't really paying close attention when the Healer explained exactly what was wrong. I think I have some sort of torn ligament or severed muscle. But it was cast with such Dark Magic that the Healers couldn't fix it all the way. It doesn't hurt, most of the time. Mainly whenever I use it after having not for a long time, like when I first wake up, or during cold weather. I have that ointment that I rub on my knee, it has some sort of magical properties in it that's a pain reliever and stabilises the Dark Magic still residing in my knee. It's not as bad as it could have been. But it's a constant reminder of my idiocy while I was young." Shaking his head, he glanced up to meet Draco's eyes. "I have kids now. I can't afford that kind of idiocy."

Draco finally leaned forward slowly, stretching a hand across to lay it on Harry's hands that were still wringing themselves together. "I'm glad nothing truly terrible happened. And that you've learned from that mistake." He wasn't sure it was what he wanted to hear, but it was how Draco felt. He watched as Harry's eyes lit up slightly before the man nodded, moving one hand to place atop Draco's, smiling toward him.

"Thank you for listening," Harry whispered, and Draco smiled softly, nodding. They stayed like that for a few moments before Draco retracted his hand slowly, picking up the card that Harry had been messing with before. He began to spin it in his hands, not glancing at it but instead keeping his eyes on Harry.

"It's your turn then." Draco nodded toward him, grinning, hoping to change the subject to something less depressing. He watched as Harry studied him during a few moments of silence before taking a deep breath and biting his lip.

"Never have I ever had a crush on my childhood rival during school." Draco blinked quickly, showing his surprise in that way. Both men sat still, staring into each other's eyes before Draco slowly reached for his glass, closed his eyes and took a large drink. Opening his eyes back up and placing the glass down, he noticed Harry also taking a drink, his eyes locked on Draco. He felt his breath hitch, thinking back to how different things could have been. Then, glancing down at the card in his hand, a king of hearts, he started thinking how different things could be _now_.

"Never have I ever," Draco began slowly, whispering, tossing the card onto the table between them, "fallen for someone I probably shouldn't have." He felt the whiskey coursing through his veins, which was likely the only reason he was being so brave. They stared at each other for another moment before they both lifted their glasses to their mouths, downing the rest of what was in their glasses. Setting his glass down, he watched Harry place his on the coffee table before shoving it off to the side, leaning forward and reaching his hand around Draco's neck, pulling their faces close together.

"Never have I ever wanted to kiss someone as bad as I do right now." Draco felt Harry's whispers across his lips, he smelt the whiskey they both had been drinking all night, and he knew in the back of his mind he was screaming this was a bad idea. But he leaned forward, pressing his lips against Harry's, and nothing else seemed to matter that night.


	6. Chapter 6

Waking up meant a few different things to Harry. A sore neck and back, a raging hangover with a pounding headache, and sunlight falling directly into his eyes to blind him. It also came with a heavyweight laying across his chest- one that seemed to be moving, no, breathing. Harry peeked his eyes open, blinking a few times to try to adjust to the light before glancing down and noticing a head of blond hair across his chest. He did notice all of their clothes still on, though, so they must not have done anything too drastic while drunk.

Memories came and went quickly in his mind as he stared at Draco sleeping peacefully on his chest. It took a few minutes too many before he realised that there was _sunlight_ in the room- the sitting room where they had apparently fallen asleep together. Harry moved to sit up, jostling Draco slightly as he moved, causing the other man to groan in dissent. Harry scooted up again, jostling Draco once more before the man turned his head farther into Harry's chest, trying to block out the light.

"Draco," Harry whispered, afraid his brain would split open if he talked any louder, "Draco, hey. Look. There's light." Harry nudged Draco's back, his eyes still squinted as he tried to wake up. He was too old for sleeping on floors.

"Obviously," Draco mumbled, shaking his head into Harry's chest, "There always happens to be light in the morning Harry."

"Not yesterday morning," Harry mumbled, rolling his eyes. He waited for this to register in Draco's mind before the man shot up quickly, glancing around before wincing and grabbing at his head.

"There's light," Draco mumbled, repeating the conclusion that Harry had come to already. 

"Obviously," Harry repeated, grinning toward Draco playfully. The man just pushed him gently in response, moving to sit up.

"I wonder if they cleared the door completely or if they're still working on it. What time is it?" Draco moved to push himself up, standing and swaying slightly before blinking and beginning to move toward the front door.

"I believe the more important question is where is the headache medicine at? Or better yet, a hangover potion? That would be bloody brilliant right about now." Harry smacked his mouth open and closed, wincing at the cottonmouth he had. He needed a glass of water. Standing, he moved to the kitchen to get that as Draco opened the front door. He heard some conversation coming from that direction, but he ignored it, for now, filling a cup with water and drinking from it as he searched different cabinets, looking for some kind of medicine.

"The snow is only up to our waist at the door now. The workers are out there digging, they said they're almost done. They apologised for taking so long, said that they had to stop last night when another storm blew through." Draco's voice wasn't surprising when Harry heard it, and he turned around to smile at the man, who seemed to be staring at the floor, or the counter, or anywhere but at him.

"Well, at least they're almost done. We can finally get out of this bloody cabin." Harry laughed, taking another drink before setting his glass down. "Heard from Scorpius or Al?" He watched Draco hesitate, and wondered what the weird look on his face meant.

"Yes, I did. They're outside the cabin right now. They want to have breakfast together since we missed dinner last night."

"Awesome! Sounds great. I'm gonna go take a shower before they finish clearing the snow." Harry nodded, grinning at Draco, who didn't even look up to see it. Harry furrowed his brow, tilting his head, but once Draco agreed and told him to get a move on so he can shower as well, he shrugged off his worries and made his way to their room to gather some clothes to change into.

\---

All Harry felt was relief when he finally stepped through the front door of the cabin into the cold winter air, spying his son and giving him a great big hug.

"Dad, we were only separated for a day," Albus mumbled against his chest, but the young boy wrapped his arms around his father anyway and hugged him back. 

"Where is my dad?" Scorpius asked, peeking inside the cabin before looking back to Harry.

"He's in the shower right now. We had just woken up when Draco opened the door to check the progress. But he'll be out soon." Harry grinned, opening his arm and wiggling his eyebrows. Scorpius looked confused, then frightened, but Albus quickly reached out to grab his shirt and bring Scorpius into a group hug. Harry wrapped his arms around both boys, laughing loudly before kissing Albus and Scorpius' heads in turn.

"What a lovely show of affection. I didn't know you liked hugs, Scorp." Draco's voice triggered the end to the group hug, and Harry took a step back, raising his arm to rub against the back of his head sheepishly. Albus grinned all the while, raising his eyebrows toward Scorpius.

"Yeah, Scorp! Didn't know you _loved_ hugs!" Albus teased, and Draco chuckled softly, moving forward to pull a less than enthusiastic Scorpius into a short hug. Harry smiled softly at the display, knowing that most of it was just for show, but he had seen the actual care put into the hug from both of them. 

"Time for breakfast, yeah?" Harry said finally, grinning as they all looked toward him. "Not in the cabin, perhaps. Let's go to the dining hall." He turned, leading the march and hoping they were following. Once he heard the crunch of snow under shoes from behind him he knew he was fine. 

Making it to the dining hall, they sat down and had a nice breakfast together, with Albus and Scorpius explaining what fun they had while Draco and Harry had been stuck in the cabin. Swimming in the heated indoor pool, mostly, since the storm made it almost uninhabitable to even be outside. When the boys asked what their fathers did while stuck in the cabin all day, the two men glanced at each other before looking back to their plates of eggs and bacon.

"Nothing, really," Harry started, looking toward Albus as he spoke, though he could feel Draco's eyes on him. "There really wasn't much to do. We drank some whiskey I had bought a bit ago, played cards. _Talked_." Harry shrugged, chuckling softly as if it wasn't a big deal.

"Yeah," Draco agreed hesitantly, and glanced away when Harry looked to him, "We did nothing." Harry blinked at him a few times, curious as to the tone of voice he used, but once Albus began speaking again he pushed the thought away and paid attention to his son.

The morning went smoothly and continued to be pleasant as the group agreed to do something together instead of apart as they had most of the week. They went to different places- snowboarding, ice skating, even at one point stopping on the trek between buildings for a snowball fight- and all agreed they had a fun time together. Having dinner back in the dining hall seemed the perfect way to end the day, and Harry's face hurt from all the smiling he had done that day. Though, it could have also been hurting from the extremely cold temperatures outside. 

"You know what we should do tomorrow, for our last day of vacation?" Harry began, grinning toward the two boys. They both furrowed their brows, then mentally did some math before realizing that they did actually only have one day left. "We should head to the nearby town. Buy some souvenirs and eat some good Irish cuisine while we're still here."

"Aren't the Irish known for their fantastic alcohol though?" Albus asked, grinning up toward his father. Scorpius raised his eyebrows, beginning to smile before smothering the look once he glanced at his father.

"Perhaps. It's too bad you won't be trying any." Harry said, grinning while Albus groaned. "You're too young, son. It's dangerous."

"Yeah, yeah," Albus mumbled, waving his hand around to dismiss the topic. Harry grinned at everyone at the table before nodding.

"It's a plan then."

\---

"Harry, a word?" Draco stopped him from leaving their room just yet. It was morning, and he was ready and excited for their trip into town. One look at Draco and Harry furrowed his brow, stopping and focusing on him.

"Something wrong?" Harry's voice sounded worried, and he reached a hand out to take Draco's, though the man moved his hand before he could take hold.

"Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to say that I decided to stay at the resort today." Draco wouldn't meet Harry's eyes but continued speaking without giving Harry a chance to interject. "I do not want to ride in those death machines any more than I need to, and I believe a nice spa day is in order before I leave the vacation. Thank you for wanting to take me, and I do hope you'll take Scorpius along. He was very excited about it."

"Uh- I- Of course, Draco. Yeah, I'll take Scorpius along." Harry backed away slowly toward the door, studying Draco. "We'll miss you on our outing today." Draco smiled and nodded, heading out into the sitting room with Harry. Draco took Scorpius aside and explained he wasn't going with them, and Scorpius nodded, hugging his dad before the three of them made their way outside, toward the taxis.

"You really do like hugging then," Albus mumbled from behind Harry, and he turned to look just as Albus and Scorpius began pushing at each other playfully. Harry rolled his eyes, continuing on down the path. He wondered to himself why Draco wouldn't want to come with them. He hadn't been very talkative yesterday either? Sure, all four of them spent the day together, but Draco hardly ever spoke, and usually only when spoken to. Did Harry do something ridiculously stupid?

Did he misremember that night? Did he force himself on Draco? They were both drunk, he probably shouldn't have kissed him. Or pulled him close, holding him against his chest, feeling the other man snuggle into him as they fell asleep. He remembered kissing the top of his head, whispering a promise of talking again soon, even though Draco had fallen asleep already. Maybe Draco didn't want any of that? 

"Dad," Albus called out, pulling Harry from his thoughts and waving him toward a taxi. Harry smiled and nodded, resolving to stay in the present and have fun on his last day of vacation.

\---

Packing up his things in their shared room was a bit awkward- Harry kept trying to start some kind of conversation, but Draco responded with nothing to keep the conversations flowing and nothing that would show him any reason that they had some sort of problem. Harry was at a loss. He was confused, he felt guilty, and he didn't know what to do to fix all of this. 

Carrying their luggage over to the taxis, Scorpius and Albus wandered off to the side to have their own goodbye, hugging and whispering to each other. Harry glanced over toward Draco, who still had his eyes trained on the ground in front of him. _'He hasn't looked at me at all the last few days,'_ he thought to himself, biting his lip before stepping forward toward the man.

"I'm sorry," Harry began, watching as Draco jumped slightly as if startled. The man looked almost scared, glancing up toward Harry.

"No, it's okay, I understand," Draco began and Harry shook his head, raising a hand.

"I don't know what I did, but I'm sorry. If it was- if it was the kiss or anything like that, I'm sorry. I won't do it again." He watched Draco's shoulders slump slightly, and the man sighed and nodded.

"I know. I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have said what I did." Harry bit his lip, furrowing his brow for a moment.

"What do you mean- I mean, did you-" 

"Father!" Both men glanced at Scorpius as he ran over, grinning widely. "Let's get home! I have some gifts to mail out tonight!" The younger boy eagerly climbed into the taxi, and Harry saw the flash of fear that crossed Draco's face as he glanced at the car. 

"Goodbye Harry. This had been fun." Draco smiled softly toward Harry, moving to sit in the car next to Scorpius, "I'll miss you."

"Wait-" The door closed, and the taxi began to drive off, leaving Harry clueless and even more confused. Something happened during that conversation, and it was hard to pinpoint exactly what it was. Some sort of misunderstanding?

"Dad, you coming?" Harry glanced over to Albus, nodding and sliding into the backseat with him. He knew if he thought it over he would only confuse himself more- he needed Hermione or Ginny. Someone who could tell him what happened.

"Did you have a good winter break, son?" Harry asked absentmindedly, glancing over to smile at him. His smile grew wider as Albus agreed wholeheartedly, thanking him for letting this happen. At least his son was happy.


	7. Chapter 7

"And then you kissed?" Pansy asked, raising an eyebrow and reclining back on the conjured couch that seemed to be Draco's speciality by now. He just spent Merlin-knows how long talking about the whole trip, leading up to being snowed-in. He explained the day they had, a rather boring one at first until the game they played at the end of the day. He didn't talk about Harry's injury, he wouldn't betray his trust like that, but he admitted that he had told Harry about his feelings. And then they kissed.

"Yes." Draco nodded, biting his lip and placing his hands over his face, groaning into them.

"But isn't that a good thing?" Pansy's tone of voice sounded a tad annoyed, though Draco could see through her. He knew she cared deeply for him and was thriving off of the drama he was talking about.

"Sure, it could be. If it wasn't just a one-time thing," Draco exclaimed, dropping his hands in defeat and glaring at the nearby books. 

"One-time thing? He seemed pretty much into the whole thing from how you described it." Pansy insisted as she sat up again, leaning toward Draco, studying him closely. "Did you leave something out? Did you mess up somehow?"

"Mess up? The only thing I did wrong was accepting the kiss from him!" Draco threw his hands up, groaning. "But there was no way I could've turned that down, even if I _was_ sober."

"Which you weren't," Pansy pointed out, grinning toward him.

"Obviously," He responded, rolling his eyes. "We snogged for a bit, then cuddled closer and I fell asleep on his chest. We both woke up with hangovers and sore backs from sleeping on the floor. The most romantic morning after, I assure you." Draco covered his face again, groaning once more. How could he have let this happen?

"Well, what else?" Pansy asked, looking confused.

"What do you mean what else?" he mumbled through his hands, refusing to move them again- preferring to hide away from the world.

"That's not exactly a horrible ending? Did something happen? Did he tell you when you both woke up that it was a mistake?" Pansy began to gently tug at his wrist, but he held firm.

"Well. Not in so many words."

"Draco-" Pansy had a warning tone, and tugged a bit harder, but he refused to move.

"I just knew it was over. He- he _acted_ a certain way." 

"Draco," Pansy said again, pulling firmly on his wrist and he finally moved his hands from his face, knowing that his blush was evident. "Are you assuming things?"

"Why not? It would never work out!" Draco bit his lip, shaking his head. "Besides, when the boys asked what we did, he told them we did _'nothing, really.'_ " Draco crossed his arms but refused to look at Pansy's smug face. 

"Draco. Write to him. Explain your thoughts. I'm almost positive that you are looking at this completely wrong." Pansy gently placed her hand on his knee, and he bit his lip, thinking this over. Did he really read this the wrong way? Was there still a chance for it?

"Do you really think so?" He whispered to her, glancing over with a slightly hopeful look. He watched her drop her usual mask, smiling softly toward him and squeezing her hand on his knee.

"Write to him. I can't promise anything, but it's worth a double check." she whispered back to him, and he took a deep breath, nodding before standing. If there was even a chance- he had to try. He _had_ to. 

"Now vanish this damn couch. I keep telling you, don't conjure furniture in my library!"

He vanished the couch with her still on it, causing her to fall to the floor. She gasped, glared at him, and threw a nasty stinging hex to him on his way out. 

\---

Sitting at his desk almost seemed surreal. So much had changed since he last sat here, since he last graded these papers sitting to his right, since he tapped his quill against his desk in thought. Sitting in front of him was a blank piece of parchment, and Draco questioned not only how his letter would go, but how to even start it. _Dear Harry_? Would that work? Should he do something more personal- or less? If he was right and Harry _didn't_ want anything to do with him, would he become aggravated about a more personal start? On the other hand, if he wanted to be with him, would a less personal greeting throw him off from the start of the letter?

Draco shook his head, realizing he was just being utterly ridiculous. Dipping his quill into the inkpot, he wrote out _Dear Harry_ on the parchment before glaring down at it once more. Perhaps he should just do a stream of consciousness and then widdle it down from there? There's no shame in alpha drafts, Draco reminded himself before taking a deep breath and placing his quill against the parchment.

Suddenly, his door burst open, and Draco had such a powerful flash of deja-vu. There Harry was, standing in his doorway, looking sheepish but also determined. Just a few weeks ago, this same man looked the same way, about to ask him if he would come on vacation with him. Blinking, Draco glanced down to his desk, spying the barely written letter he was working on before glancing back up to the impossible image before him.

"Harry?"

"Draco, I'm sorry. I know that I did something stupid- I had to of done so- and I apologise for it. I apologise for drinking around you when I shouldn't have considering my feelings about you. I apologise for assuming the wrong thing during that game, for forcing myself on you, any of that. But I want to at least stay friends, maybe work toward something more? Or even if not that, I just don't want to lose you as a friend. You understand me in a way that no one else really does." Draco blinked rapidly, standing slowly from his desk as he tried to process everything he'd just heard. Opening his mouth, he was about to speak before Harry continued quickly, "Think of the kids!" Draco was taken aback for a moment before Harry shook his head, as if telling himself to stop, but continued speaking anyway. "The boys! Al and Scorp. They were so happy that we were friends. We don't want to disappoint them, do we? Just because of my stupid mistake?"

Draco held up a hand, finally halting Harry's rambling. Draco's brain was going both a million miles an hour trying to process everything, while also focusing on one small thing. _Harry liked him back_. This thought finally registered in his head, and he walked around his desk, leaning against the front of it as he studied him. "So, you believe that somehow, after I practically admitted to falling in love with you and then fell asleep on your chest that night, that _you_ did something wrong? Is this correct?" He raised one eyebrow, watching him closely. Harry fidgeted slightly but certainly looked confused.

"I mean, didn't I?" Harry took a step forward, his hand twitching as if wanting to reach out to him. Draco hoped he would. "I had to have done something. You acted so distantly, afterwards."

"I thought that _I_ had done something wrong," Draco whispered toward him, watching as the realisation dawned on Harry's face. He quickly took a step toward Draco before hesitating, holding up his hands as if he needed to physically do something to stop himself.

"Then-" Harry bit his lip, and Draco watched as he thought over exactly what he wanted to say. "You mean to tell me that you _do_ like me?" Draco took a deep breath. If he was mistaken about Harry's intentions, this could end badly. But he had to chance it. He nodded, agreeing to Harry's statement. The man began to smile, taking another step forward. "And that you _did_ want the kiss?" Draco hesitated, but nodded along again, watching as Harry took another few steps closer, bringing them within arms reach. "Then, does that mean," Harry began to whisper, taking another step closer and reaching a hand up, hovering it over Draco's cheek, "you would be okay with _another one_?" Draco stared wide-eyed before nodding slowly.

Harry's hand met his cheek just as their lips pressed together. Kissing Harry while sober felt drastically different than it had when they were drunk. For one, there was no screaming voice in the back of his head telling him he was making a mistake. There was absolutely no way to interpret this in a bad way- Harry liked Draco, and Draco liked Harry back. And they were kissing. Draco wrapped his arms around Harry's waist, pulling him in closer and pressing himself against the other man, giving as good as he got.

When they finally pulled away, Draco stared into the emerald eyes in front of him, shaking his head. "Let's agree to always be forthright. Misunderstandings could cost us too much." Draco's voice was quiet, almost a whisper. He didn't want to break this small thing they had now, and he felt overly vulnerable like he could break apart at any moment.

"Then let's be forthright," Harry replied, just as quiet, but his smile lit up the room. "I'm falling for you Draco. I've liked you for a while, even before the resort. I just never thought I had a chance." Draco felt Harry's arms wrap around him, and he felt secure in his embrace. "I'm not letting this chance I've been granted slip away. Will you go on a date with me?" Draco couldn't help but chuckle at the phrase, but nodded in agreement anyway, leaning forward and pressing their lips together once again.


	8. Chapter 8

Harry practically fell out of the taxi, landing in a pile of fluffy snow that flew up from the force of his fall. Albus crawled out next- the poor boy having been squished into the middle seat- and Harry huffed, glaring up toward his son. He watched his son glance quickly toward the resort before looking back, sheepishly, to Harry and reaching a hand out to help him up. Taking the help- he wasn't nearly as young as he used to be- he stood and began brushing snow off of his midsection.

"Lily, darling, come on," Harry called into the taxi, raising his eyebrows. She glanced up quickly from her book, widening her eyes once she noticed that they had actually stopped. She quickly climbed out of the taxi, almost bumping into another car that was driving down the road. "Careful, dear!" He took a deep breath, glancing at the taxi behind them as part of the Weasley family came crawling out from it. "Rose, watch where you're walking! Put down the book!" He called across to her, watching as she huffed visibly, but placed her bookmark and held the book to her chest.

"Oh, just let her read, Harry." Hermione climbed out of the passenger seat of their taxi, smiling over toward him. "She learned a long time ago how to read and walk at the same time. It's our speciality, isn't it, my little Rosie?" Hermione smiled sweetly to her daughter, who lit up with joy as she quickly reopened her book and continued reading. Harry watched as Lily made her way over to Rose, reopening her own book and reading beside her.

"I just didn't want her to fall over into the snow and hurt herself!" Harry replied, raising his eyebrows toward her and raising his arms in a shrug.

"You should really listen to the Minister," Draco whispered into his ear from behind, and Harry felt him brushing snow off of his back and shoulders. "She can throw you in Azkaban for insubordination." 

"With how often I watch her kids, I'd hope not," Harry mumbled, causing Draco to chuckle against his back. Harry smiled, spinning around in his arms before leaning in quickly for a kiss.

"Oi! I did not survive that damn death machine to be witnessing this! It's too soon!" He heard yelling from behind him, followed by a quick 'Ow!' as, presumably, Hermione smacked him in the back of the head. Draco and Harry separated, Harry rolling his eyes and turning back around to smile at Ron.

"You're welcome once again for letting your entire family come on my yearly trip. I truly feel the love and appreciation." Harry placed a hand on his chest above his heart, nodding solemnly toward his friend.

"You just wanted someone to watch your kids for you," Hermione replied, waving her hand as if dismissing his words.

"No, that's what I have Ginny for," Harry replied easily, tilting his head. This statement was followed by a slap to the back of his own head as Ginny walked out from behind him, hands on her hips, followed by James. Scorpius immediately made his way over toward Albus, making sure he was his loudest as he complained, once again.

"I don't see why I had to ride in the other taxi. My own blood father wasn't in it, and neither was my best friend. I should've just sat in that taxi with you, Albus." Scorpius pulled Albus in for a hug- a running gag that had turned into such a frequent thing that it has become normal. Harry was secretly glad about this, knowing that the Malfoy family were never physically affectionate people. Until now, that was. He felt Draco once again hug him from behind, his face nuzzling the back of Harry's neck. He felt a blush rise, but couldn't hold a smile back.

"Sorry, Ginny. I was just playing. I didn't mean it. Please watch the kids while Draco and I spend time together," Harry whispered quickly over to her, watching as she struggled not to laugh, raising her chin.

"Sure. But you owe me!" she said, grinning as she turned dramatically and walked away.

"They're your kids too!" he yelled out after her, followed by muffling as Draco put his hand over Harry's mouth.

"Let her go. She just agreed to watch your kids so we can spend time together. She hates me still, this is a breakthrough," he whispered seriously into Harry's ear, causing Harry to roll his eyes, pulling Draco's hand off of his mouth.

"She doesn't hate you," he replied, spinning in place again to face his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around him. "She pretends to hate you because it's fun for her to get a reaction out of you. I've told you this before." Harry raised his eyebrows, smiling.

"Well you haven't seen what she's like when we're alone together," Draco whispered back, causing Harry to chuckle and shake his head.

"She's engaged to your best friend. I doubt she's even _allowed_ to hate you." Harry watched Draco roll his eyes before his boyfriend started scanning all the people gathered around- their large family.

"Pansy wouldn't give two Knuts if Ginny terrorised me. I'm sure she even encourages it," Draco mumbled grumpily, dropping his head onto Harry's shoulder. Harry just rolled his eyes, but patted Draco's back soothingly, holding him close. Harry could hear Albus fake-retching in the background, followed by Ron's encouragement of such behaviour, and Ginny calmly telling Albus to stop or he'd be sent to Hogwarts to stay in the library with Pansy. Harry smiled as Albus stopped what he was doing really quickly.

"Let's get back to the cabin, Draco. I've been babysitting so much I almost forgot what it's like to lay in bed with you at all," Harry mumbled into his neck, nuzzling him and grinning. He heard their family begin to walk away, their chatting voices getting softer as they went.

"We can't have that, can we?" Draco replied, pulling back and smiling at him. "Perhaps we'll get lucky and get snowed into our cabin again."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! You can show your appreciation for the author in a comment below. ♥
> 
> This work is part of HD Erised, an on-going anonymous fest. The creator will be revealed January 7th.


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